Two giant structures had taken shape by the Dragon Gate River, high platforms designed as nine-story pagodas. Each platform was ninety-nine meters wide, one hundred and eighty meters long, and ninety-nine meters high.
A golden arched bridge spanned the two platforms, entirely assembled from bronze artifacts, each piece at least ten thousand years old.
Many parts were damaged and had been repaired with metal of the same material.
Despite this, as sunlight fell upon the bronze bridge, the patterns on the ten-thousand-year-old bronze began to shimmer, casting a fragmented golden glow.
The bottom edge of the Dragon Gate Golden Bridge reflected dimly. The golden light did not flow to the inside of the bridge, causing only two of the three light pillars on top of the golden bridge to illuminate.
For the Paradise to descend and the Golden Carp to open that gate, the three pillars representing "Heaven, Earth, and Man" had to be fully lit.
Xuanyuan Xing stood on the mobile palace, turning to glare at her subordinate. "Star Seer, calculate the time!"
The Star Seer from the Xuanyuan family pushed the Sun-Moon Divine Instrument before him, the celestial map spreading all around.
The Star Seer wiped sweat from his brow. "The Ziwei Star Lord is moving south and will soon arrive at the Heavenly Gate. It will be time for the Golden Carp to open the gate in at most one hour!"
That meant two hours at most!
Xuanyuan Xing's eyes were filled with anxiety. "You useless wretch, didn't you guarantee this bridge was fine? Only two pillars are lit so far, what about the third?"
The Star Seer wiped his sweat. "We only know the theory of this ancient ritual; no one has ever truly tested it, and it's impossible to test. I didn't expect so many parts to be damaged..."
"Less nonsense! I'm asking you what we're going to do!"
The Star Seer gritted his teeth. "We can only try our luck. We must use the method of sacrifice to forcefully awaken the pillar of light for the Paradise!"
"Oh? What do we have to sacrifice?"
The Star Seer grinned, gesturing to the monks, Taoists, demons, and zombies below him... and those Dongling Guards stationed on the outer perimeter!
Xuanyuan Xing glared at him fiercely. "If it works, then start immediately!"
In the next moment, countless pillars extended from beneath the floating crystal palace. The spiritual energy gathered at the top of these pillars began to release, like bombers in mid-air, dropping countless bombs onto the demons and humans below.
The palace swiftly reaped lives. The dead demons, humans, and zombies transformed into points of sacrificial light, falling onto the golden arched bridge.
These poor souls were instantly sacrificed by half.
The remainder finally realized what was happening.
A demon king from the Shituoling Club revealed his true form and knelt on the ground, weeping. "Why? The Xuanyuan family promised us that with the descent of Paradise, we would also receive a piece of land, innate spiritual energy, and a new beginning..."
But more Shituoling demon kings came to their senses and fled in desperation.
Old Stone, who had been lurking ten li outside the Dragon Gate River, witnessed all of this.
It sighed. "I knew it. Humans can't be trusted. These poor demons."
Leading the remaining spirits, Old Stone rapidly retreated from the perilous place and returned to Lingmeng Mountain to hide.
The areas on both sides of the Dragon Gate River were now empty, with no surviving sacrifices. The golden arched bridge was finally complete, and the third pillar of light shot into the sky.
The three pillars of light pierced the sky, forming a strange curtain.
The curtain reflected the scene below, revealing an image of an inverted golden bridge.
It was as if the golden bridge was reflected on the curtain, but in the opposite direction.
What was an arched bridge became a crescent bridge on the curtain.
Xuanyuan Xing looked up in excitement and saw a golden gate slowly rise from the crescent bridge!
The gate to Paradise had appeared!
Silently, the gate opened a sliver...
Instantly, towering figures appeared, their attire varied, their expressions complex. They were legendary deities, demonic gods from the darkness, as well as Saintly Beasts and Spiritual Lords...
These powerful beings from beyond the realms, representing all of gods, immortals, and spirits, were crowded there, frowning as they looked at the Dragon Gate Golden Bridge below.
"Will it succeed this time? If it fails again, we'll have to wait for several hundred more years."
"Sigh, how many years, how many times, and each time it fails."
"If the Golden Carp cannot leap over the Dragon Gate, Paradise cannot descend, and we will remain trapped outside of Earth. These are the rules personally set by the missing Emperor Haotian!"
After the leader of the outer-realm divine beings disappeared, Paradise was sealed. For so many years, not a single Golden Carp had successfully leaped over the Dragon Gate.
And even if one succeeded, the gate to Paradise would only open for a short time.
For those who wished to return, the time was never enough.
Suddenly, a divine powerhouse sneered. "This time it will surely succeed!"
"Xuanyuan Zi, why are you so sure?"
"Because the Xuanyuan family is working hard!"
The divine powerhouse stroked his beard. "My descendants, whom I left on this planet, have been preparing for this plan for many years."
The gods began to converse with shock that reverberated through the stars.
"Xuanyuan Zi, have you solved the three great mysteries?"
"Heh, it wasn't me, it was my descendants who solved them. The ritual is about to begin, please be patient, everyone. We will definitely return!"
In the crystal palace, Xuanyuan Xing was preparing for the final ritual.
She held the Hell Diagram in her hand, and a crystal coffin lay at her feet. Inside the coffin was clear water, and within the water slept Su Yuluo, the reincarnation of the Golden Carp.
Zhu Tianqi, disguised as a member of the Wu clan, stood to the side, covered in strange talismans.
These talismans were providing her with spiritual energy, rapidly transforming her inherently fragile body.
Zhu Tianqi's restricted Earth Immortal strength was also being gradually unsealed and released.
Her heart was filled with such joy that she almost burst out laughing.
Xuanyuan Xing snorted. "You're getting off cheap. These spirit talismans have been accumulated by the family over a thousand years, enough to elevate your physique to the level of an immortal. If it weren't for the three great mysteries, why would I give them to you?"
Zhu Tianqi remained silent, unwilling to waste any of the spiritual energy entering her body.
At this moment, she had to admire how cunning that scoundrel Qin Yexuan was, how cleverly he had schemed.
Now, the plan to restore spiritual energy was irreversible.
Xuanyuan Xing also relaxed, focusing on waiting for the gate to open. However, a faint unease lingered in her heart: "Where is my brother-in-law right now? His complete lack of resistance is not like him..."
At this very moment, Qin Yexuan was standing in the middle of the golden arched bridge.
He had taken advantage of Xuanyuan Xing's soul sacrifice to quietly hide within the light particles, easily standing in the center of the golden bridge.
In his consciousness, a mysterious power that had accompanied him for ten thousand years surfaced.
"Qin Yexuan, are you ready?"
Qin Yexuan smiled. "It's time to say goodbye, old friend!"
The mysterious power emerged from his consciousness, and a golden shadow appeared on the Dragon Gate Bridge.
"Qin Yexuan, after all these years, you've never asked my true identity?"
Qin Yexuan looked down at the Dragon Gate River, still calm. "During the first millennium's agreement, I guessed your identity, so there's no need to ask anymore."
The golden shadow actually let out a laugh, then detached from Qin Yexuan's consciousness and soared into the heavens.
Instantly, the golden shadow pierced through the sun, moon, and stars, becoming impossibly vast.
Who was he?