Baby with Daoist Monarch System

She slowly closed her eyes, letting the tears fall.

Time passed, and when she opened her eyes again, there were no tears, only a profound golden glow, embodying a maturity and resolve beyond her years.

She felt the surging Power of Fire within her, a force now several times stronger than before. The seeds of the Nucleus of Annihilation, though integrated in a moment of crisis, contained the ancient Cosmic Origin of Fire, providing her Ancient God’s Fire with unprecedented nourishment.

She could distinctly sense the closer connection between her flame and the Cosmic Origin, as if she could hear the rhythm of cosmic life and feel the breath of distant stars.

Xu Qinghan took a deep breath to calm her racing heart. She knew this was not the time for sorrow. She must return quickly to the Fire Sanctuary to inform the elders about the Nucleus of Annihilation and prepare for the trials ahead.

However, when she tried to locate the Fire Sanctuary, she found herself surrounded by nothingness, seemingly abandoned at the edge of the cosmos, directionless.

The explosion of the Nucleus of Annihilation not only destroyed that Star Domain, but also thoroughly disrupted the Fire Network’s positioning.

”Damn it!” Xu Qinghan’s heart sank. Where was she now? How far was the Fire Sanctuary?

She attempted to activate the fire mark at her brow to connect with the sanctuary via the Fire Network. However, the network seemed severed, engulfed in deathly silence with no response.

Xu Qinghan felt a sense of unease rising in her heart. The Guardians sacrificed greatly to suppress the explosion of the Nucleus of Annihilation, drastically damaging the Fire Network. Now, she was truly alone.

She surveyed her surroundings, engulfed by endless darkness and cold. Occasionally, remnants of shattered stars floated in the void, the aftermath of the Nucleus’s explosion.

Xu Qinghan took a deep breath, forcing herself to calm down. She knew panic was useless. She had to find her way back to the Fire Sanctuary.

She condensed the power of her Ancient God’s Fire in her eyes, trying to pierce through the endless darkness to find any clues.

Time passed without knowing how long until her gaze suddenly focused.

Deep in the distant starlit sky, she saw a faint gleam. Though weak, it carried a familiar resonance—it was...the aura of fire!

Xu Qinghan’s heart leaped with joy. That had to be the direction of the Fire Sanctuary!

Without hesitation, she transformed into a golden streak, rushing towards that faint glow.

The long journey was fraught with unknowns and dangers. She crossed Star Domains eroded by the Power of Nothingness, avoided roaming void creatures in the cosmos, and even felt the omnipresent oppression of the Master of Nothingness.

Her body gradually recovered during the journey, with the Power of Fire within her becoming more refined. She began experimenting with the Flames Power newly integrated, realizing the seeds of the Nucleus not only strengthened her fire but greatly enhanced her resistance to the Power of Nothingness. She could even sense a faint pulse of origin in the void, deepening her understanding.

Perhaps this was an outcome unforeseen by the Master of Nothingness. Despite being eroded, the core fire from the Nucleus of Annihilation, a birthplace of fire, contained mysteries connecting with the Void Origin.

After several days of this prolonged journey, Xu Qinghan finally saw the familiar valley again.

Fire Sanctuary!

She felt a wave of relief as her taut nerves finally relaxed.

However, upon nearing the sanctuary, she found the atmosphere unusually heavy.

The altar’s Fire in the center of the valley was dimmer than before, seemingly on the verge of extinguishing. Surrounding the altar, those aged figures were even more hunched, their presence weak like candles flickering in the wind.

Xu Qinghan’s heart sank suddenly, realizing the Guardians had paid unimaginable costs to suppress the explosion of the Nucleus of Annihilation.

She landed in front of the altar, her gaze sweeping over those familiar figures. Many Guardians once present were now gone, leaving only empty mats behind and a faint trace of fire lingering in the air.

”Elder!” Xu Qinghan stepped quickly to the elder’s side, her voice trembling slightly.

The elder slowly opened his eyes, though dim and weary, they gleamed with a hint of surprise and relief upon seeing Xu Qinghan.

”Qinghan... you’re back...” the elder said hoarsely, his voice tinged with weakness.

”Elder, how are you? The Fire Network...” Xu Qinghan asked anxiously.

The elder sighed softly, shaking his head slowly: ”The Fire Network... has been heavily damaged. Many Guardians... burned their Ssource to suppress the explosion of the Nucleus and dissipated completely...”

Xu Qinghan’s heart wrenched with pain; although expected, hearing it still felt like a sharp stab of sorrow.

”The Nucleus of Annihilation... was it successful?” the elder struggled to ask, eyes holding a trace of hope.

Xu Qinghan raised her head sharply, determination gleaming in her eyes: ”Yes, successful! The seeds from the Nucleus are already integrated with my Ancient God’s Fire!”

Upon hearing this, the elder’s dim eyes erupted with dazzling light, trembling with excitement: ”Good! Very good! The Fire is not extinguished! Hope endures!”

He struggled to reach out, pressing his hand on Xu Qinghan’s brow. She felt a faint but pure power of fire flow from the elder’s palm, nourishing her Ancient God’s Fire.

The elder closed his eyes, carefully sensing the fire fluctuations within Xu Qinghan. After a while, he withdrew his hand, revealing a relieved smile.

”Your fire... has become several times stronger than before. The seeds from the Nucleus contain ancient Cosmic Origin of Fire; you’ve integrated them, greatly enhancing your resistance to Nothingness. It’s a fortune within misfortune,” the elder said softly.

Yet Xu Qinghan felt a twinge of heartache, thinking this so-called fortune was paid for with the lives of countless Guardians.

”Elder, what should we do next?” Xu Qinghan asked.

The elder’s gaze swept across the empty mats around the altar, his eyes reflecting a trace of pity.

”Though the Fire Network is heavily damaged, it hasn’t been completely severed. The will of those Guardians who dissipated has merged with the fire, becoming part of the network, still silently guarding us,” the elder’s voice was deep, ”However, the network will take a long time to recover. And you... your trial cannot be halted.”

He gestured towards the Star Map; the ancient map was dimmer but its countless light points remained clear.

”The Nucleus of Annihilation is just the first step in the unity of fire. The flames scattered throughout the cosmos are far more numerous than you imagine. Some are eroded by Nothingness, some hidden by ancient guardians, some even forgotten in the river of time.”

He pointed at a dull light shrouded by dense void energy on the map: ”The next target is the ’Tomb of the Void.’”

”The Tomb of the Void?” Xu Qinghan’s heart trembled. She had read about this place in ancient books—a legendary place said to bury countless relics of ancient civilizations, also one of the battles fought by the Master of Nothingness.

”The Tomb of the Void was once a flourishing Star Domain, completely breached by the Master of Nothingness in ancient epochs. The Master laid down a ’Void Burial Heaven Array’ there, transforming the domain into a deathly graveyard to bury beings eroded by Nothingness,” the elder said solemnly, ”And the flame seeds are suppressed within the deepest part of the Tomb, guarded by endless void specters and the Fallen.”

”Void specters...the Fallen...” Xu Qinghan’s heart pounded. She remembered facing the Fallen on the Ancient Starry Battlefield and encountering void creatures at the Nucleus of Annihilation. The Tomb of the Void sounded even more perilous.