A figure emerged, gazing up at the Divine Tree standing tall in the heavens. He gently touched the immense trunk and smiled, "Jianmu, it has been a long time. Are you well?"
The colossal tree trembled, a mix of joy and excitement. Though a tree could not speak, he understood its sentiment.
A scholar in green robes, his silk sash fluttering, his hair bound with black silk, his eyes smiling like spring, warmed the mortal world.
Few sentient beings knew, but heaven and earth would never forget the sage who once divided heaven and earth, and reshaped the patterns of ten thousand ages – the Sage of All Beings, the Dao Master of Qing Ling.
Qing Ling raised his eyes and saw the rolling karma of countless tribulations converging, the ashes of mortal desires clouding the minds of Daoists, and malevolent energy eroding their resolve to seek the Dao.
He sighed softly, murmuring to himself, "Sentient beings should not be like this. Heaven and earth should not be so. Since there is a tribulation that consumes souls in the mortal world, there shall be a clear breeze and new rain to wash away the dust."
"Let the rain come!"
"Boom!"
"Boom!"
Divine thunder rolled through the nine heavens, lightning pierced the firmament, and a great wind swept the clouds. A torrential rain descended with force upon the Divine Continent, nourishing the countless rivers and mountains, washing away the grudges of countless lives and deaths.
This rain brought joy to all beings, astonishment to all Daoists, and renewal to heaven and earth.
"It is him!"
"He has returned!"
"The one has finally returned."
Amidst this grand curtain of rain, a Daoist in green robes, holding an umbrella, walked out slowly. The wind and rain were fierce, his green robes stirred, bells chimed, and he walked through the air.
On Floating Jade Mountain, amidst the swirling wind and rain, disciples emerged from their caves, braving the downpour to enter the sea of Manjusaka flowers. They knelt before the Floating Luo Palace, their clothes soaked by the rain.
Kong Xuan stood at the forefront, his voice tinged with excitement, "We welcome our honored master's return to heaven and earth!"
With that, he touched his head to the ground and bowed, not rising.
"We welcome our Honored Master (Dao Master)'s return to heaven and earth!"
From the nine heavens returned Shen Nong, the elder in the moon laurel grove, half-drunk; the Emperor of the Ten Thousand Demons from the demon realm; the Four Great Hall Guardians of the Hall of All Beings; the Earth God of Guang Tu... all bowed low.
Behind them, disciples of the third, fourth, and fifth generations...
All bowed, saying, "We welcome our (Grand) Honored Ancestor's return to heaven and earth!"
In the heavy rain, the Azure Dragon smiled, and Qi Gui's red pupils welled with tears.
Upon the Floating Luo Palace, the Daoist in green robes and jade umbrella slowly descended through the air. The heavy rain nourished thousands of vibrant, blood-red Manjusaka flowers, and the kneeling Daoists.
Qing Ling smiled and said, "Rise, all of you."
Qing Ling closed his jade umbrella, and the world instantly became clear. The rain ceased, the sun emerged, a rainbow spanned the sky, a thousand flowers bloomed, and all the grass grew lush.
The disciples, filled with excitement, rose and gazed at the familiar yet somewhat unfamiliar figure before them, their hearts overflowing with joy.
Without him, they would be orphans without fathers; without him, they would be wanderers without homes. Master and disciple were father and son, the sect was home. In this world, the teacher was their closest kin.
"Now that I have returned, you can rest assured," Qing Ling said with a smile to everyone. "You have suffered these past years."
Tears welled in their eyes, deeply moved. The vast Northern Continent, countless palaces of beings, the immense fortune of the Great Yu Kingdom, countless treasures – the legacy he left behind was immeasurable, something even a sage could not overlook.
Yet, his disciples and followers, mere younglings just beginning their Dao, had to face cunning and treacherous ancient monsters, and terrifying reclusive ancestors.
The hardships and sorrows they endured were beyond words.
Beside the Floating Luo Palace stood a grand hall containing countless memorial tablets. The topmost tablet bore a single character: "Dao."
The second row held three, with "Heaven" and "Earth" honored on either side.
In the center was inscribed: "Supreme Being of the Boundless Primordial Luo Golden Immortal, Sage of All Beings!"
Further down were rows of spirit tablets of disciples who had entered reincarnation. Over ten thousand, a grand multitude, the price paid for guarding the legacy.
Qing Ling's gaze swept through the void, transcending time, across all realms. Great beings and ancient ancestors trembled, holding their breath, fearing that this sage would make an example of them.
Fortunately, Qing Ling merely glanced at them and did not unleash a slaughter.
As those great beings breathed a sigh of relief, their hearts remained filled with unease. If the sage were to deal with them, they might die without even knowing how.
Upon this thought, many great beings wished to flee to the chaos beyond the heavens.
On Shouyang Mountain, Laozi looked repeatedly but could discern nothing.
Yuanshi frowned slightly.
Tongtian was keenly interested.
Jieyin and Zhunti were somewhat uncertain, pondering the impact of Qing Ling's return on the flourishing of the West.
In the Palace of Nuwa, Nuwa sighed, "As expected of one who forged his own path. Over these thousand plus kalpas, Qing Ling's strength has become the foremost among the sages."
Qing Ling returned, bearing no sage's oppressive aura, yet possessing a sage's demeanor. No celestial phenomena accompanied his arrival, yet he commanded an innate authority.
Qing Ling conversed and laughed with his disciples, comforting their hearts, expounding on the Dao, explaining principles, and guiding them in their cultivation. Floating Jade Mountain once again exuded the aura of a sage.
Within the Floating Luo Palace, the emerald light had shone for over a thousand kalpas, everything seeming as it was in the beginning.
Qing Ling sat on a cloud bed, gazing at the verdant palace lamp. It reminded him of its former owner, who should be returning soon.
However, with the impending Great Tribulation of Investiture of the Gods, everything would enter a cycle of reincarnation once more.
Qing Ling sighed. Though he wished not to interfere, as the "Sage of All Beings," he could not stand idly by.
He wished to leave behind a world of hope for future generations, not an era of despair and the decline of the Dharma.
However, interfering in the Investiture of the Gods did not necessarily mean fighting for victory or seizing great benefits.
He had severed his serpentine form to suppress the source of the Eastern Pole, thus severing the remnants of ancient gods. Otherwise, if Haotian were to merge with the Dao and enlist the ancient gods, he would be implicated.
Although Qing Ling, as a Hunyuan Sage, was fearless, it would also affect whether Haotian dared to act so.
The current Primordial World was, in essence, a stagnant pool. Because of harmony, peace, and too many ancient gods occupying the authority of heaven and earth, too many great beings and ancient ancestors monopolizing the world's fortune and the path of the Great Dao, sentient beings were left with no path forward.
This was also why cultivation in the Primordial World had become increasingly slow. Over a thousand plus kalpas, even the disciples of sages had not produced many great beings or top-tier experts.
Although the Primordial World was constantly expanding and strengthening, more beings required more Great Dao power for cultivation, and as those great beings and ancient ancestors advanced, they consumed more of the world's Dao power.
Therefore, in pursuit of balance, heaven imposed three disasters below heaven, and five tribulations below the Golden Immortal realm. Those who overcame them ascended; those who did not perished.
Thus, the Heavenly Dao made it increasingly difficult for any Taiyi to break through to the Great Luo Golden Immortal realm, and even more so to become a great being. As for the supreme experts, in all the myriad realms, only a handful had broken through in over a thousand kalpas.
Qing Ling also bore some responsibility for this situation. The creation of the myriad realms had led the Primordial World to support a population a hundred times larger than before, not to mention seven sages and one master of the Earthly Dao.
If one could not increase income, one could only reduce expenditure.
Therefore, the Tribulation of Investiture of the Gods was the will of heaven, the will of earth, and the will of those who yearned for further progress.