124: The Three Truths 2

Everyone's gaze turned to the world seed floating in the air.

Amidst the pure white light, it began to rotate slowly, emitting gentle fluctuations.

A neutral voice resonated directly in everyone's minds:

"The balance has been broken; the time for choice has come."

Xiao Yan struggled to stand, the Flame Lord's phantom still partially attached to him: "What... choice?"

The light from the world seed formed two images: the first showed it splitting into three parts, each merging into one of the three people; the second showed it remaining whole, but requiring one person to eternally become its "Guardian."

"The first choice: return to the original balance," the world seed explained, "You three will each bear a portion of the power, but the cost is losing all special abilities and reverting to ordinary people."

"The second choice: create a new order," it continued, "Retain all power, but one person must eternally fuse with me to maintain the Universe's balance."

Both choices were incredibly cruel.

Xiao Yan looked at Xiao Bing, who was still struggling in the ice Seal, then at Ling Xiao, who had a pale face, and fell into painful silence.

"Is there... no third possibility?" Ling Xiao asked softly.

The world seed was silent for a moment: "Theoretically... it would require a sufficiently powerful 'container'... to hold all of me without collapsing..."

Just as everyone was despairing, an explosion suddenly came from the top of the furnace!

A golden light and a cyan light broke through the ice layer and fell straight down!

When the light dissipated, Yao Chen and Xun'er's figures were revealed; both were covered in wounds, but their eyes were firm.

"Flame Brother!" Xun'er exclaimed, immediately running to Xiao Yan's side.

Yao Chen vigilantly surveyed his surroundings, his gaze lingering on the Ice Lord's phantom for a moment: "It seems we arrived just in time."

"Yao Chen! Xun'er!" Xiao Yan was both surprised and delighted, "How did you..."

"Long story short," Yao Chen took out a peculiar artifact—a ruler that looked ordinary but exuded ancient fluctuations, "We found this... the Ancient Flame Ruler... legend says it can measure all flames in the world..."

The Flame Lord's phantom suddenly became agitated: "Yao Chen? Did you cultivate my 'emotional aspect'?" He laughed loudly, "Fate is truly marvelous! This ruler is precisely the prototype of the 'Emotional Container' I personally forged back then!"

The world seed sensed the presence of the Ancient Ruler, and its white light suddenly intensified: "Detecting a qualified container framework... requires emotional energy to activate..."

Yao Chen's eyes lit up: "Sure enough!" He looked at the three of them, "Children, inject your most precious emotional memories into the ruler!"

Xun'er had already taken out the Golden Emperor Sky Burning Flame: "I'll help too!"

Without hesitation, Xiao Yan, Xiao Bing (through their mental link), and Ling Xiao simultaneously released their emotional memories—Yao Chen's teachings, Xun'er's waiting, the bond between brothers... These memory images surged towards the Ancient Ruler like a torrent.

Xun'er's Golden Emperor Sky Burning Flame acted as a medium, fusing all the emotional energy together.

The Ancient Ruler began to glow and deform, eventually transforming into a crystal clear heart, suspended beside the world seed.

"Emotional Container ready," the world seed announced, "The third choice is open—with emotion as the bond, the three of you will jointly bear the guardian responsibility, taking turns on duty, and being free the rest of the time."

This choice made everyone's eyes light up.

But just as they were about to act, cracks suddenly appeared in Xuan Shuang Celestial Venerable's ice Seal!

She was actually burning her life Origin to Break through the Ice Lord's confinement!

"I won't... let you succeed!" Blood spilled from the corner of her mouth, her face ferocious, "If Lord Ice Lord has fallen... then let's all be destroyed together!"

An ice-blue beam of light mixed with Chaos energy shot from her heart, striking directly at the world seed!

The Ice Lord and Flame Lord simultaneously moved to block it, but it was too late—the beam grazed the world seed; although it didn't hit directly, it interfered with its stability!

The furnace began to vibrate violently, and the dark red energy in the cave boiled again!

Even more terrifying, the world seed's light became unstable, and the three choices were disappearing!

"Oh no... it's going into hibernation mode..." the Flame Lord said anxiously, "A choice must be made immediately!"

Yao Chen made a decisive decision: "Choose the third one! Quick!"

Xiao Yan and the other two rushed towards the world seed and the Emotional Container without hesitation.

The moment they made contact, a dazzling white light erupted, engulfing the entire furnace space!

In the white light, Xiao Yan felt his consciousness extend infinitely, as if fusing with the Universe itself.

He "saw" the birth and death of countless worlds, "heard" the symphony of stars moving, and even "touched" the flow of time.

At this moment, he understood many things—the essence of Chaos and order, the Origin of the world seed, the painstaking efforts of the three Venerables...

As the light gradually diminished, Xiao Yan found himself standing in a starry sky, with Xiao Bing and Ling Xiao beside him.

An invisible bond connected the three of them, sharing perceptions and power.

In front, the combined form of the world seed and the Emotional Container floated—it had now transformed into a slowly rotating crystal planet, beautiful and mysterious.

"Did it succeed?" Xiao Bing touched his face; the ice patterns had disappeared, "Are we... now the Guardians of the world seed?"

Ling Xiao sensed it: "Not entirely... we're more like 'administrators'... it has its own consciousness..."

Xiao Yan looked around: "Where are Yao Chen and Xun'er? Where are the Ice Lord and Flame Lord?"

As if responding to his questions, the starry sky suddenly distorted, revealing the scene outside—Yao Chen and Xun'er stood on the furnace platform, waiting anxiously; the Ice Lord's phantom was dissipating, but with a rare smile on his face; the Flame Lord's remnant soul had completely merged into Xiao Yan's body, becoming part of his power.

As for Xuan Shuang Celestial Venerable, she collapsed at the edge of the platform, her life force almost exhausted, the madness in her eyes replaced by confusion.

Before completely dissipating, the Ice Lord took one last look at her:

"Profound Frost... let go of your obsession... feel the beauty of this world... this is... true purification..."

When the image disappeared, only the three of them and the crystal planet remained in the starry sky.

A gentle voice sounded:

"The Guardian Contract is established.

Next, you need to complete the ultimate purification—re-Seal the Origin of the Chaos Devourer."

Xiao Yan and the other two exchanged glances, nodding simultaneously.

Through the newly established connection, they instantly understood what to do.

The three of them held hands around the crystal planet and began to chant an ancient oath:

"In the name of Flame..."

"By the oath of Ice..."

"By the covenant of Spirit..."

"Triple Body Integration, balance eternal!"

The crystal planet erupted with unprecedented light, penetrating the furnace and illuminating the entire Source World!

In this light, the Clones of the Chaos Devourer dissipated like morning mist; the contaminated creatures regained clarity; even the darkest corners were touched by gentle light...

When the light reached its peak, Xiao Yan and the others' consciousness temporarily separated, each returning to their main body.

In the furnace, Xiao Yan opened his eyes and saw Yao Chen and Xun'er's surprised faces.

The star glow and black threads in his right eye were now perfectly balanced, forming a beautiful pattern like a Universe vortex.

"Is it over?" Xun'er asked softly.

Xiao Yan smiled and shook his head: "No, this is just a new beginning."

He looked at the consciousness bodies of Xiao Bing and Ling Xiao, who were still on duty in the starry sky, and through the connection, he sensed the changes happening throughout the Source World.

The world seed chose balance instead of annihilation, which meant that the Chaos Devourer was not completely destroyed, but transformed into the other pole that maintained the Universe's balance.

Yao Chen patted his shoulder: "Let's go home, children.

There's still a lot waiting for us."

Xiao Yan nodded, taking one last look at the crystal planet floating in the center of the furnace.

There, the phantoms of Xiao Bing and Ling Xiao were waving goodbye to him—a temporary farewell, because according to their agreement, he would take over Xiao Bing's duty in ten days.

When everyone left the furnace, the world outside had been completely renewed.

Sunlight pierced through years of dark clouds, falling on everyone's faces.

In the distance, the outline of Utan City was faintly visible, where family and friends awaited their return.

Xiao Yan took a deep breath of the fresh air, feeling the three powers flowing within him—the Flame Lord's Fire, the Star Bloodline, and the seed of chaos, now in perfect balance.

Through the Guardian connection, he could sense the states of Xiao Bing and Ling Xiao; the three had truly become an inseparable whole.

"Big Brother, what are you thinking about?" Xun'er held his arm.

Xiao Yan smiled and shook his head: "Just thinking... is all of this really over?"

Yao Chen walked ahead, saying without looking back: "For a Dou Practitioner, there is never a true end.

Only the beginning of the next journey."

In the sky, a meteor streaked across, as if confirming these words.

Xiao Yan held Xun'er's hand tightly and followed Yao Chen's footsteps.

Whatever awaited them, at least for now, everything was good.