Archive of Our Own

Chapter Text

"Cang Qiongshan Qing Jing Peak Lord Shen Qingqiu, you are—— " The sky made a loud interference before the elder of Huahua Palace could deliver the final verdict in the Four Factions Trial.

Bang!

Bang!

Bang!

A series of thunderous lightning strikes the heavens one after the other, and a number of water mirrors appear all over the Pride Immortal Demon Way Universe, which is actually a large screen in the eyes of any modern person if one of them is present, but this is referred to as a water mirror by the people's voices in this cultivation world.

"Look, Mom! The sky is so dark!"

"What exactly is that?"

"What is going on?"

"The gods are furious with us! This is the end!"

"What are you saying, nonsense?" The mortals on the street began to panic, with children crying in fear, women becoming nervous, and men attempting to be brave and provide comfort to those in need.

On the high platform where the Four Factions of Cultivator World stand, the Cang Qiongshan Sect, Huahua Palace, Zhaohua Temple, and Tianyiguan are also bewildered.

They are now looking at heaven through a large black water mirror (black screen) with their own thoughts.

"What exactly is this?"

"Is heaven enraged?"

"It has to be the villain, Shen Qingqiu!"

"Amitabha!"

Everyone's attention was drawn to the person kneeling in the middle of the platform, where a supposed immortal master, the handsome young and infamous aloof peak lord who was bound with immortal rope and was previously looking at them with cold eyes, was now lying on the ground with no consciousness.

His face landed on the cold, hard floor, as if he is sleeping or without a life, causing everyone to take a deep breath.

Then a flash of white from the sky descended on this person, forming a strong light blue colored energy barrier that no one could access or break.

"Shen Qingqiu!" An enraged Huanhua Elder cultivator yelled, but no one responded.

The immortal master's body remained motionless.

Luo Binghe's pupils contracted.

Yue Qingyuan gripped the Xuan Su tightly. 

"Quick, have someone look at him!" The Old Huanhua Palace Master ordered in a hurry for unknown reason, fearing the other person is already dead.

Hearing the order, a few older disciples standing near the condemned criminal approached, attempting to approach the unconscious Qing Jing Peak Master, but were pushed back by an invincible force, forcing them on vomiting blood.

"This! How dare you Shen Qingqiu!"

"Shen Qingqiu, why are you attacking my people?" The enraged Old Huanhua Palace Master angrily shouted.

"Something is wrong," Mu Qingfang murmured, while the other peak lords next to him look with their questioning look toward their physician.

Then the cultivators from the small sects attempted to breach the barrier that surrounded Shen Qingqiu but were unsuccessful.

Before anyone could become even more enraged, an unknown mechanical sound rang throughout the world, where they saw the black mirror (screen) with a change of difference on it.

On the screen, a set of familiar characters appeared. 

[Red Alert: World Reset!] 

"What is the reset?"

"What world?"

"This...isn't our world, is it?" Among the many exclamations, everyone has their own thoughts, with a tinge of fear in the air.

The image slowly changed, revealing a strange white room instead of the black mirror (screen).

[ It moved slowly to show how white, clean, and silent the surroundings were before abruptly stopping at the white floor where a strand of black hair was lying. ]

[ It kept moving bit by bit until it was longer than anyone could have imagined, at which point a slender hand was seen lying on the side of the white bed. It is clearly owned by someone else, who also owns the black hair. ]  

"What is this? "

"Who is this? "

Everyone is curious, eager to discover the answer as the image moves, but it stops and returns to a black screen.

Eh!??

Everybody is displeased.

The black water mirror then represents the characters once more.

[ System Prompt: Due to a technical error from the Main God System, it has been declared to be destroyed the small world of Original Proud Immortal Demon Way after the host clearing memories is completed.]

"Proud Immortal Demon Way?"

"How come I don't understand anything?"

"What exactly is this?"

"I suspect the small world that was written above is...our world," One of the Zhaohua Temple Elder Nuns bravely, drawing a lot of stares from everyone who heard her words.

"That's nonsense! What kind of small world is this?"

"Who's behind this?"

"If the elder's thoughts are correct, then what is this small world would be... If this small word is to be destroyed, if it is meant our world, it means we will cease to exist! " A promising young disciple from the Qiong Ding Peak Cang Qiongshan Sect murmured solemnly.

Everyone: !!!

The realization hits everyone, causing them to experience terror and dread. They began to question their own existence as they gazed up into the sky water mirror of unknown. 

The water mirror has changed yet again.

[Prompt: Repairing the Small World...]  

[Prompt: Analyze the Small World...] 

[Prompt: Small World Processing...]

[Warning! System Alert!] - [Warning! System Alert!]  - [Warning! System Alert!]  -[Warning! System Alert!] 

[ System Failing to Update——Error---Error---]

[Voice Memory Allocation: Hello? Hey? Is there anyone out there? ]

This voice! 

It is so familiar that some people who appear to know the owner widened their eyes, one by one falling on the unconscious Qing Jing Peak Lord.

[ Voice Memory: Good day? Hello? Anyone? Anybody? ]

[ The voice began to sound anxious, fearful, and disoriented. ]

Yue Qingyuan stands up and shouts, his determined eyes and anxious heartbeats looking up to the sky.

"Xiao Jiu! Xiao Jiu! Can you hear me!"

People looked up to the Cang Qiongshan SectLeader, perplexed.

The other Peak Lords who knew who this "Xiao Jiu" in their senior brother's mouth were now stunned.

If their deductions were correct, the voice they kept hearing was none other than their combative sibling.

"Shen Qingqiu..." gritted Luo Binghe.

" A'lou, is it Shizun?" Ning Yingying inquired, nervously.

"This is the master's voice..." Ming Fan on the other side whispered, sending the other Qing Jing Peak Disciples into a frenzy of worry and excitement.

"Who is that scum?"

"Is that the lecherous villain?"

"Xiao Jiu——"

"Zhangmen Shixiong, it appears you will not be heard," Wei Chengwei said as they continued to hear their senior brother's voice on the blackk water mirror, repeating the same question of asking if there's anyone there, making everyone very uncomfortable.

"Xiao Jiu..." Yue Qingyuan murmured, his gaze falling on the unconscious body down on the platform.

[ Voice Memory Allocation: No...no...no.]

[ An abrupt eerie silence followed.]

[ Ting! ]

[ System Prompt: 999 Online has been repaired temporarily!]  

[ 999 System: Good day. I am 999, an existence described as a high-level intelligence machine created by people from another high civilization. I am not human, have no soul, and exist solely to complete tasks.] 

"Is this...an entity?" A cultivator asked, feeling strange.

[ 999 System: You may address me as such, but now is not the time for an explanation. In the next few minutes, I will cease to exist, to die in your mortal words. ]

[ 999 System: Please pay attention and remember that I worked very hard to be able to appear before you right now, so listen carefully. Your world is merely a fictional story written in a small book by someone in a big world that has been blessed by my host (owner) to have its own consciousness. ]

[ 999 System: But now, if my host died, this world would cease to exist. My host is currently in critical condition, with his mental consciousness being attacked and scattered. This is my host's chosen main world, which is why this world is very affected. ]

[ 999 System: If my host perishes, everyone will eventually die in this world, as this world will cease to exist. However, I have a solution to keep your world from ceasing to exist, and that is to save my host from death. ]

"Then who is your host?" Someone in the audience asked. 

[ 999 System: My host's name is....-----]

[ System Prompt: 999 is being deleted right now....]

"Wait...we have no idea who the host is?"

"Does this said host represent like the Emperor God of our world?"

"How can we save the host if we don't know who they are?"

"....I don't want to die, I haven't even gotten married!"

"....."

As the revelation of the water mirror was announced, there were many side comments from each side, they even ignored the fact that their world is just a story made up by someone.

They are more concerned that their world will end in a matter of seconds, and many mortals are very solemn, unaccepting, and frustrated by this harsh fact.

"Geez, it isn't obvious who is the host? That is that villain, Shen Qingqiu!" An unknown cultivator exclaimed angrily, pointing to the Qing Jing Peak Lord, who was still unmoving where he was lying on the ground.

"He suddenly fell into the ground since the appearance of the water mirror above our heads, and that unknown barrier is protecting him...no one can even break it. Isn't that the most suspicious here?"

"Do you mean the scum master is the host being talked above?"

"How is that possible?"

"Is it Shizun?" Luo Binghe asked lowly, this scum master, whom he despised seemed very not what he really know about.

"Shen-shixiong... there's a chance he is the host since because we heard his familiar voice earlier," Qi Qingqi commented.

"That means if he dies, our world will also cease to exist!" Exclaimed by an old monk.

Gongyi Xiao added, "Then Elder Shen is dying."

"So we have to save him!"

"But why would we help a scumbag?"

"Are you an idiot? If that scum died, our world would be destroyed! All of us would perish!"

Then a series of arguments ensued, with only the other people's serious thinking.

When the entire world is in chaos, the sounds of the black water mirror reveal new changes, but it is no longer only characters but someone else known to the people of the cultivation world appeared.

[ In Demon Realm's Northern Palace ]

[ In this trial, the absent An Ding Peak Lord of the Cang Qiongshan Sect is shown throwing everything in his desk full of scattered scrolls to the ground. The usual timid face is no longer the familiar weak and cowardly image that the other Cang Qiongshan Peak Lord is always known with. ]

[ But is now enraged and showing his fangs of uncontrolled anger. ]

[ Mobei-Jun, the northern Demon Lord, enters the study, coldly silent, looking at the small mortal he hates. If it wasn't for the other's usefulness, the other should be dead right now. ]

[ "What are you up to?" Mobei-Jun asked. He appeared to be irritated by the state of mess in the room. ]

[ Instead of the petty mortal human's familiar cowardly appearance, Mobei-Jun saw a pair of very cold eyes staring back at him. ]

[ It irritated the Ice Demon Lord's skin and surely provoked him. ]

[ Mobei- Jun suddenly dared to attack, and Shang Qinghua summoned his sword without blinking an eye, which the Qi sent by his sword are so powerful that the Northern Demon Lord actually stepped back, his lips vomiting a small blood. ]

Everyone who witnessed this scene was taken aback.

Cang Qiong Peak Lords thinking is- Do you believe Shang Qinghua is powerful?

Luo Binghe is very dissatisfied cursing with- This rat...

Shizun is actually this powerful was what the An Ding Peak Disciples thoroughly mind, not even caring why their master meeting an Ice Demon.

Another cultivator wonders aloud - Is the Cang Qiongshan Sect really hiding an eating tiger?

[ "You dare!" Mobei-Jun angrily raised his voice and his eyes revealed a full of killing intent, expecting the other to quickly apologize, but all the Demon Lord got was a cold stare from his small human spy. ]

[ Shan Qinghua sneered as he walked past the Northern Demon Lord. "I don't have time to play around with you, ice cube."

[ Then he slowly raised his sword, causing a rift in reality to appear out of nowhere. Shang Qinghua entered calmly, not even looking back at the Demon King, who was stunned by his bidding words. ]

The water mirror screen changed once more.

It depicts Shang Qinghua, who was in the Demon Realm at the time, unexpectedly appearing in front of the unconscious Qing Jing Peak Lord, Shen Qingqiu.

"Shang shidi!" Yue Qingyuan yelled.

An Ding Head Disciple yelled, "Shizun!"

"What are you, Shang Qinghua?"

"Shut up!—-" Shang Qinghua glared angrily at everyone. He twitched his lips as he looked up at the water mirror in the sky.

"Damn it!" He groaned loudly, shocking everyone.

"Damn it, Jiu!" Shang Qinghua screamed as he raised his sword to strike the barrier surrounding Shen Qingqiu.

Because of the strong Qi, everyone's knees gave out, the weak kneeled on the ground, while the strong could only sway and try so hard not to fall down.

"Damn it, Jiu! Why are you dying? You're ruining my mission!" The attack managed to create a crack in the barrier, but it was quickly repaired, causing Shang Qinghua to become increasingly irritated.

Shang Qinghua nearly destroyed the entire platform with one, twice, and three consecutive attacks, but the barrier remained intact.

Everyone stared at him in awe and horror.

What kind of power is this, so much power, so strong.

Even Mobei- Jun, who was able to come as soon as he found out his small human spy was in the trial, is staring at the person he appears to know nothing about at all.

"Shang Shidi..." Yue Qingyuan goes down from his seat at the Cang Qiongshan Sect side. Stepping on the middle platform casting a worried gaze to his unconscious Xiao Jiu.
 
Shang Qinghua looked back lazily, then glanced at the An Ding Head disciple. 

"Get me a chair." He ordered so coldly. 

This is so different from the usual polite and down to earth Shang Qinghua.

Still, the Head disciple of An Ding Peak immediately goes down to get a chair for his master.

"Master....please have a seat."

"Go back." Shang Qinghua raised waved his hand away, sitting on the chair placed next a few steps away from the Qing Jing Peak Lord's barrier. He sat uncaringly, curious eyes falling on him. 

"Ask what you want, Yue Qingyuan."

"Shang Qinghua...you..." Qi Qingqi swallowed the rest of her words of how this Senior Brother words are very disrespectful to their Head Senior Brother when the usual timid eyes looked blank and coldly back at her.

As if the other is looking at the dead person.

" What is happening, Shang-shidi? " Yue Qingyuan started.

" Oh...is that it? "

" Shang Shishu I want to ask to who is exactly my Shizun?" And who are you? Luo Binghe asked with remaining words left in his tongue which is exactly the same thought running on a certain Northern Demon King.

Luo Binghe walked towards them with a very provocative fake smile.

Too bad.

That's no effect nor made changes from the cold-face Shang Qinghua.

"Are you worthy to call him your Shizun?" Then after saying that Shang Qinghua stabbed his sword to the ground, trapping it to the stone.

Luo Binghe hearing those words stopped. His seemingly black eyes flashed a glint of red.

"Look at the sky. You see that water mirror or what we call us screen, that's Jiu--no, Shen Qingqiu's monitoring system of everything or where his main memory storage of everything are recorded from any world he has been. But since Shen Qingqiu's systems are gone or deleted now this (999), the Main God System is now ordered to destroy Shen Qingqiu's main system's server memory, 999."

"What you will see or hear in that water mirror above your head is everything. When I say everything, it meant everything. After all, it is broken now. It will show whatever or randomly show anything that isn't even supposed to be seen or not allowed to be seen."

"This 999 appeared earlier saying something, was it Qingqi Shidi who was the host that was dying that must be saved in order to save our world?" Mu Qingfang asked out.

Shang Qinghua raised an eyebrow and sighed.

His solemn sigh made some people feel very uncomfortable. 

"Yes. The host of this world is Jiu, or Shen Qingqiu, as you know. He is basically the God of this world, but this damn ancestor decided to share it with the original creator of this world."

"Original creator? Elder Shang, may this disciple ask if this is connected with the fact our world is made from a mere story. Does that mean the original creator is the writer who wrote our world." Gongyi Xiao asked politely.  After saying those, everyone seemed to remember that this world is in fact a story book that follow a predetermined path set by the writer.

Though, they have no idea what kind of story this world is meant.

"Well said, you are a really smart kid. Jiu is surely right about you." Shang Qinghua words weren't left unheard by some, making others look at the promising head disciple from Huanhua Palace.

"I thank Elder Shen for his compliment on this disciple." 

Luo Binghe's eyes darkened looking at Gongyi Xiao.

"Shen Qingqiu shares the consciousness with the original Creator's of this world. So, he cannot control the destiny of everyone like some other Gods in your mouth, making everyone in this world follow the rules of this world set by the Creator of the book. Others have their own will to be able to defy the heaven, of course, they are the unimportant characters in this story book. However, those an important characters like any story book you've heard need to follow what their destiny no matter what."

"Then, if this is a story book, there must be a hero. Who is the protagonist?" A listener in the crowd cried.

Shang Qinghua brushed it off. Even if everyone was eager to know, all they could do was swallow their breath and wait.

"Shen Qingqiu choose this certain story book, so that's why this book became a small world with its own consciousness to exist, making you, you, you, and everyone alive now like any world. But as you see the story world is still unfinished, so it still connected with the host who gave it power to exist. If the host who gives it breath died, the world will ceased to exist."

"Then...Shang-shidi knows why all of a sudden this situation is happening? Why is Qingqi-shidi now facing death?" Yue Qingyuan feared the answer, but he wants to know what is happening to his Xiao Jiu.

"This..." Shang Qinghua looked at everyone with bated breath. 

"If my analysis is correct, Jiu's soul was now scattered as far as what was supposed to be his plan after ending completing giving this world an independent life existence."

"What do you mean?" Qi Qingqi asked, crossing her arms, rubbing of the edge of her other hand's finger.

Those spoken words gave them a foreboding feeling.

"His..." Shang Qinghua stared up to the sky.

A large prompt of characters suddenly appeared on the black water mirror showing a very large picture with a captions prompt.

"What?" Exhaled Luo Binghe. With his gaze fixed on the sky, he saw clear images of himself and his scum master standing next to each other, so close, so intimate. 

His heartbeats seemed to beat so fast. 

However, before he could notice, it was broken by the many voices around him. 

"What the hell is that?" By the screamed of the Little Palace Mistress. 

"A'Lou..." Ning Yingying cried, running up beside her shidi, worried in those innocent eyes.
 
"This...how shameless!" Qin Wanyue angrily shouted, the jealousy in her eyes raging. 

"Isn't it the Xiu Ya Sword and his apprentice that he abused?" An unknown cultivator announced the obvious. 

"Why are you ignoring that symbol on his head?" "Exclaimed a righteous and brave female disciple from Bai Zhan Peak." 

"That disciple is a demon... a heavenly demon. Qing Jing Peak actually hiding a demon, no the Cang Qiongshan Sect is colluding with a heavenly demon!"

"Shut your mouth!" Qi Qingqi raged.

"Junshang..." Sha Hualing, who had no idea when she appeared, walked to stand beside her Junshang.

" The demon saintess!"

"He's a really a heavenly demon!"

"Kill him! Kill him---!" Everyone yelled, ready to attack Luo Binghe, who had just awoken from a trance and looked at the cultivators coldly, revealing his gleaming heritage on his forehead.

He is no longer concealing or suppressing his demonic energy.

"Binghe..." Qiu Haitang, who had been crying earlier, moved closer to the man she had fallen in love with.

Even other young women who have long been drawn to the former Qing Jing Peak Disciple's charm have slowly walked to the side, as if ready to protect this young demon lord.

Qi Qingqi looked at her head disciple, Liu Mingyan, clenched her hands, and remained quietly on her peak side without moving or speaking. 

Qi Qingqi raised an eyebrow, knowing how her Head Disciple had interacted with this Luo Binghe these past few months, who was actually a heavenly demon.

But now.

Qi Qingqi anger subsided a little, it seems her Head Disciple is not really that so stupid.

"The Huanhua Palace is actually hiding a demon!" Exclaimed an old monk from Xuanhua Temple.

"What are you saying, nonsense? Our palace is not hiding any demon," Old Palace Master defended while gritting his teeth in displeasure.

Why this is happening....his plan...his plan is being ruined.

Many voices rang out one after the other, revealing a strong displeased reaction on many faces.

Shang Qinghua, who has been staring around aimlessly, stands up and motions for his head disciple to come to him.

"Shizun?" Feng Xue asked, ignoring everyone's stares at his master's actions of calling him.

"Return everyone to the sect, no matter what happened, no one in our peak is allowed to fight any war if one exists. Don't join this idiot people." 

"Yes, Shizun."

"Shang-shidi...could you please explain?" Yue Qingyuan moved closer, a desperate flash in his eyes as to what the hell was going on.

Even Luo Binghe, who was surrounded by beautiful women, walked casually to face Shang Qinghua. His gaze is determined on getting an answer.

Shang Qinghua sighed as he looked around.

He is clearly irritated, his temper is flaring, and he has no time to play with these paper characters.

"I'm leaving," Shang Qinghua declared.

"Where are you going?" Mobei-Jun asked as he teleported in front of his small human spy. His rage from being beaten had already subsided and vanished when he heard this small human was leaving...where?

Long eyelashes trembled as they returned the cold blank stare of those icy eyes, and Shang Qinghua merely uttered indifferently. "Ice Cube, this is not your concern."

Ice cube?

This nickname did not sit well with Mobei-Jun.

"Shang Qinghua!" The northern Demon Lord yelled angrily, reaching for the small human's delicate wrist.

However, Shang Qinghua will not be easily touched as he swung his sleeves, releasing some force that caused the other to step back.

"Don't touch me, Ice Cube," Shang Qinghua said coldly.

"Shang-Shixiong, where are you going?" Mu Qingfang can clearly see their An Ding Peak Martial Sibling's personality is not the timid or coward they once knew, so he lowers his voice more politely.

"I'm going to find Shen Qingqiu to fix this world, he's breaking my s-class mission," Shang Qinghua says, raising his sword to create a black rift in the reality.

"I want to come..." Luo Binghe said, drawing many puzzled looks. 

Shang Qinghua came to a halt, turned his head, and laughed mockingly. "For what?"

"I'd like to see Shizun."

"Luo Binghe...are you curious about the illustration in the sky? You don't have to worry, it's not even yourself. " Shang Qinghua says, hinting at a ridicule tone.

"What does Shang Shishu mean?" Luo Binghe asked, his voice low and annoyed.

What do you mean, it's not him? It's entirely him.

Are you blind Shang Qinghua?

It's him and his scum master, so close together.

Luo Binghe once again left staring at the water mirror in the sky.

But what do those postures and words mean, and why he felt annoyed for this.

"It is not you, but it is supposed to be you, however, your destiny was altered in the middle, making this small world even more crazily messed up, ending to becoming a trash story."

"Is it my future....is that my future?" Luo Binghe inquired hurriedly.

He wants an answer! 

"You can say that, but it is no longer yours, your destiny has been written." Shang Qinghua then entered the rift, and dissappeared in front of everyone's eyes.

Luo Binghe couldn't even ask any more questions because the others were already gone.

What does it mean? It's his future, but no longer his, what destiny?

Looking at the sky illustration again, the "him" there was wearing white robes rather than the all black he was now wearing. 

That is not him...well the "Him" in their is much older by two or three years. Still, based on Shang Qinghua's word this is what he is supposed to be in the future.

Yet, no longer now.

What in the world is going on? Luo Binghe couldn't understand why he was so bothered by the above image of his scum master and him standing close to each other.

He felt something awaken in his heart, but he had no idea what it could be.

"Shizun..." Luo Binghe muttered.

The water mirror changed yet again, this time displaying another set of familiar characters with another image.

That shocked everyone to the core.