C2370 The Roaring Stars
Upon seeing Yu Yuan's face, the elder Space God suddenly descended into madness.
Crack!
Deep holes emerged on the surface of the gleaming star, which bore a striking resemblance to the Heaven Opening Flare Star, transforming it into a vast honeycomb.
Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!
Outside the Creation Star River, a torrent of spatial energy was funneled into the star through those holes.
The star vibrated as if guzzling a nutrient solution, greedily drawing in the spatial energy from the cosmos.
Paxton alternated between sobbing and maniacal laughter, his mind in disarray.
"Have either of you seen him before?"
The Time God Heesters, concerned by his old friend's sudden lunacy, fixed a piercing gaze on Yu Yuan.
Both Zhong Chichen and Taishi wore expressions of doubt.
Despite being under the influence of the Forgotten Divine Power, Paxton, who should have had no recollection of his past encounters, became mentally unstable the instant he laid eyes on Yu Yuan.
The situation was exceedingly peculiar.
From Paxton's extreme reaction, they surmised that he must recognize Yu Yuan, or perhaps someone with Yu Yuan's visage.
"I have no recollection of him."
Yu Yuan, with a furrowed brow, responded serenely, his attention unwavering from Paxton.
"Of course, if you have the means to restore my lost memories, I might then be able to determine whether I've ever encountered Paxton," he added.
Dense spatial energy continued to converge from all around, streaming into the star's holes like a river.
This star, already brimming with immense spatial power, left Zhong Chichen in awe. Amidst its violent tremors, the hidden laws of the void within were weaving and adjusting.
Zhong Chichen sensed something profound.
Whoosh!
He sent a rainbow-hued divine ray he had refined into one of the caverns, catching sight of the crystalline mountain walls inside the star, ablaze with blinding law lightning.
Concentrating his consciousness, he discovered that the lightning streaking across the mountain bore the semblance of veins and flesh.
Puff! Puff!
Suddenly, he observed that Paxton, in his state of frenzy, had developed numerous holes in his desiccated body.
The former Space God appeared as if he had been riddled by Space Light Blades in an instant.
Yet, not a single drop of blood seeped from his body.
His dry skin was devoid of veins, and he lacked a heart, along with the Bloodline Crystal Chain that should reside within.
Zhong Chichen scrutinized Paxton, while Yu Yuan's expression revealed surprise. "He's enveloped in an aura of death. His body lacks the flesh, blood, and vitality inherent to a living being."
To Yu Yuan, Paxton seemed no more than an inanimate object!
"It's because he and the star beneath him have miraculously fused into one. There's no trace of spatial power within him, yet all the spatial forces within the star are at his command."
After a moment of contemplation, Zhong Chichen coolly surmised, "Furthermore, his soul and body have been severed from each other."
The revelation startled everyone.
Yu Yuan had observed that Paxton lacked any signs of flesh and blood, and Zhong Chichen noted his soul's separation from his body. Was he alive or dead?
The Time God, Heesters, paused, gently swaying the hourglass, allowing his divine power to cascade from his ivory-like bones.
Specks of Time God power infiltrated the caverns within the star, swirling and whistling through.
Heesters perceived a presence within the star, unmistakably Paxton's essence!
"His physical form is merely a shell, a facade. If I'm not mistaken, his flesh, bones, and sinews have become one with this star." Heesters, too, had detected the oddity. He nodded at Zhong Chichen, prompting, "Go on."
Zhong Chichen, who had grasped the profound truths of space, added, "His conscious thoughts now dwell outside the star, within the spatial folds."
No sooner had he spoken than Zhong Chichen, enlightened by the enigmatic star, departed from the Time Book.
Transforming into a prismatic beam of divine light, he wove through the star's surface, vanishing into the layered spatial folds, endeavoring to coalesce Paxton's scattered consciousness.
Yet, the openings on Paxton's form and the fissures on his forehead persisted in multiplying.
He and the star appeared to be truly unified, with the star's surface cavities mirroring his physical state.
"It's an instinct," Yu Yuan mused, his brow furrowed as he sensed a fleeting fixation. "He's trying to communicate something. There's an unresolved obsession deep within him."
"Obsession?" Heesters echoed, taken aback.
Yu Yuan nodded affirmatively, "Let's wait and see."
It was palpable to all that the former Space God, seated atop the Heaven Opening Flare Star, was fervently harnessing spatial anomalies, undoubtedly preparing for some grand endeavor.
Paxton had long since fused the sinews of his flesh and blood, the Bloodline Crystal Chain within his heart, and the star into one, treating the star as his own body. The skin and flesh he displayed were merely a soulless husk.
"What exactly happened? Can you tell me?"
Heesters gazed intently into Paxton's eyes, seeking an answer.
Yet Paxton's eyes remained steadfastly on Yu Yuan, muttering incomprehensible words.
Yu Yuan listened intently but could not decipher the language either.
After some time, the star, resembling a beehive, sprang into motion, having absorbed a wave of spatial power from the Creation Star River. The hefty Time Book clung to the star, remaining stable and unified with it as it moved.
Eventually, the star, brimming with boundless spatial power, began to emit a whistling sound within the Creation Star River. Paxton, fixated on Yu Yuan, saw his already withered body begin to wither further at the sound of the star's whistle.
The star was no different.
In the instant the massive Oddity Stars surged through the Creation Star River, the enigmatic material that constituted the star began to vanish along with the spatial power.
It wasn't shrinking; it was dissipating.
Yu Yuan suddenly noticed that as the star soared through the Creation Star River, the surrounding scenery began to change at an increasingly rapid pace. A crescent moon hung overhead, and Canli, with her cool demeanor, silently emerged into his view.
Canli's icy eyes glanced at him dispassionately, her lips curving into a sinister smile for a fleeting moment.
The vision vanished in an instant, as the star beneath them had already flown past Canli's position, propelled by the formidable spatial force.
Canli, who had departed before the Spirit of Chaos, was no match for the velocity at which the star, steered by the Space God Paxton, navigated the Creation Star River.
"I saw Canli!" Zhong Chichen's voice echoed from a spatial fold outside the star. "She's been taken over by the Moon Origin Spirit. We've just overtaken her!"
"Try to see if you can connect with Paxton's dispersed consciousness!" Yu Yuan called out in response.
"I'm trying my best!"
Subsequently, the mysterious stars, instinctively controlled by Paxton, began to accelerate through the Creation Star River. The images beside Yu Yuan whizzed by at an ever-increasing speed.
He needed to concentrate intensely to discern a clear image from the fleeting glimpses.
Before long, he beheld a realm aglow with dazzling stars.
Deep within the shards of stars, resembling precious crystals, Barol, elevated to supremacy by the power of the stars, was devoutly kneeling.
At that moment, Barol appeared to have assimilated numerous fragmented star cores. The myriad shards encircling him were the quintessence of stars.
Clearly, Barol had been overtaken by the consciousness of the Origin Domain Star Spirit, now acting through his body.
Barol was intently engaged in worship, oblivious to the Oddity Star that whizzed past him in an instant.
Due to its swiftness, and with Barol's back to Yu Yuan, he couldn't discern what Barol was venerating.
First Canli, then Barol, followed by Loong Jie and Yuan Lianyao, each flitted across Yu Yuan's vision.
Loong Jie manifested as a serpentine Golden Dragon, clasping a majestic Holy Mountain forged of gold. His dragon form coiled around the mountain, his lower jaw resting on the peak, as if he were earnestly heeding some sound.
Yuan Lianyao was submerged in a towering inferno within the Creation Star River, seemingly purified by the celestial fires.
Yu Yuan couldn't determine whether she was seized by the extreme flames or by another spirit of fire.
The exalted ones who had departed were now inhabited by the Origin Spirits of the Origin Domain. Yet, they were all unharmed, each living well.
As the star sped by them, Yu Yuan's anxiety eased; there was no need to fear for their demise.
Yu Yuan immediately recognized that the star, steered by Paxton, possessed an inconceivable velocity, continually overtaking those who had left.
The star streaked through the Creation Star River at a breathtaking pace, Paxton's form melding with it. He no longer gazed at Yu Yuan, but instead bowed his head, seemingly lost in contemplation.
He occasionally whispered incomprehensible words, which everyone ignored.
Then, amidst his murmurs, a phrase emerged that everyone understood: "The outer ring of the Creation Star River is an immense circle."
After uttering those words, the Oddity Star beneath him quaked with a sudden force.
The path of the star underwent a dramatic shift, no longer delving into the depths of the Creation Star River, but instead it began to orbit!
In that instant, Zhong Chichen let out a muffled groan, returning from a tiny space in the star's outer folds, his mouth smeared with blood.
All eyes turned to him.
With a pallor washing over his face, Zhong Chichen shook his head and addressed the group, "He is too powerful. And the one who has bound his memories and consciousness is even mightier! Within the external layered space, I could glimpse the shadow formed by his soul. Just as I was about to seek his wisdom, the shadow would disintegrate into dust."
"A fearsome force envelops the void surrounding the star, locking away his memories and spirit."
Wiping the blood from his mouth, Zhong Chichen settled onto the Time Book and remarked, "He survives within this star by separating his soul. Let's wait and see what he intends to do."
