In the same moment that Meng Hao was sucked into the black hole, his clone’s ninth life, the eternally blind Little Treasure, was in the middle of sculpting. Suddenly, his hand shook, and he accidentally sliced his finger with the blade. Blood began to flow.

He slowly raised his head, and a look of confusion could be seen on his face. A strange sensation flowed through him, as though a thread which had always been attached to him had suddenly been cut off.

When that happened, Little Treasure felt as if he had lost something. As he sat there silently, a gasp could be heard from off to the side. His wife rushed over and immediately staunched the flow of blood.

“What happened?” she asked. After a long moment, Little Treasure shook his head.

“Nothing,” he murmured. “I just suddenly got the sensation that I'm not complete.” Because he couldn't see, there was no way for him to notice that his wife’s face was as ashen as his own, and she looked just as confused.

At the same time, the 9-Essences Paragons on Planet Vast Expanse, including Jin Yunshan, the Sect Leader, Immortal Bai Wuchen, and all the others, suddenly s.h.i.+vered. It was as if something had just flowed across them, simultaneously causing their memories of Meng Hao to suddenly grow a bit unclear.

“What just happened!?”

“Something’s wrong. My memories of the Ninth Paragon seem like they might disappear at any moment....”

The Sect Leader, Jin Yunshan, and all the others were all in their secluded meditation facilities, feeling completely shaken. Similar things occurred within the Ninth Sect itself.

Far away in some other location in the starry sky of Allheaven, beneath the new 33 Heavens, many people in the Mountain and Sea b.u.t.terfly had similar reactions.

That was especially true of Xu Qing. As she sat there cross-legged, she suddenly opened her eyes and coughed up some blood. She trembled as a wave of fear rose up inside of her, completely filling her.

As of that moment, she could clearly tell that her ability to sense Meng Hao had been severed.

Her face drained of blood, and her eyes filled with grief. Smiling bitterly, she reached out to prop herself up on the nearby wall. After a long moment, her eyes filled with a resolute gleam.

“It doesn't matter what happened, or how much time goes by,” she murmured, “I have faith... that you won’t perish.” She repeated those words over and over, both with her mouth and in her heart.

During that moment, everywhere in the starry sky of Allheaven, any person who knew or had even seen Meng Hao, all felt a deep internal transformation. Suddenly, their relations.h.i.+ps with Meng Hao seemed to change, to lessen.

As soon as he left, all traces of him within the starry sky of Allheaven were cut. If he didn’t return within a relatively short time, then they would completely fade away. In the years to come, the people who had known him would return to the dust, and eventually, no one would remember him.

**

Outside the Vast Expanse, Meng Hao opened his eyes.

His armor was gone, having once again changed into the shape of a copper mirror, which he held in his hand. When he looked out, he saw starlight, s.h.i.+ning down from a boundless starry sky.

There was no mist, and there was no Vast Expanse. There was only the radiant starry sky, filled with one flouris.h.i.+ng world after another.

Meng Hao gaped in shock. It felt as if some unknown fetter had been removed from his cultivation base, allowing it to surge mightily. He could also sense that this starry sky was filled with immeasurable Immortal power.

In fact, when he looked around, the first thing he thought was that everything here was pure to the ultimate degree. It was completely different from the Vast Expanse.

There was no dust, no aura of death. There was only flouris.h.i.+ng life force; everything pulsed with a feeling that made joy rise up in one's heart.

“Why... do I feel different here than in the Vast Expanse?” Even as he hesitated in confusion, he saw a few beams of light shooting toward him through the starry sky. They were led by a middle-aged man, next to whom flew a beautiful woman who looked very anxious.

Once they could actually see Meng Hao, the woman shot into the lead position, her face filling with joy. She was the first to reach Meng Hao.

“Elder Brother, we finally found you!!” She seemed so happy that tears spilled down her cheeks as she threw herself into his arms. Meng Hao was confused, certain that he didn't even know who this person was. But then pain suddenly stabbed into his mind.

“Elder Brother, it’s a good thing you and Elder Brother Chen Fan both had sealing marks placed on you by the sect back then, otherwise we might never have been able to find you.

“Oh right, Elder Brother, what exactly happened in the Arcane Pocket Realm?

“The Hundred Sects all sent Chosen into the legendary Arcane Pocket Realm of the long-since destroyed Vast Expanse. But then, a few days ago, something happened, and many of the Chosen suddenly died, and the others were forcibly teleported out.” More people arrived by Meng Hao’s side, and all of them seemed very concerned about him. They all started talking at the same time, causing Meng Hao’s confusion to increase, and his head to hurt more.

A moment later, a memory rose up which told him that he was Meng Hao, a Chosen disciple of the Blue Sea Sect, one of the Hundred Sects that existed in this starry sky. Some time ago, he had joined a group of other various Chosen to enter an Arcane Pocket Realm.

Supposedly, it was a Realm that had been destroyed ages ago, a place known as the Vast Expanse Realm.

There were certain restrictions that limited entry, therefore the Hundred Sects had ama.s.sed a large group of Chosen to all enter at the same time.

However, something unexpected had occurred within the Vast Expanse Realm, and the majority of the Chosen had been killed. Of the group from the Blue Sea Sect, only he and his Elder Brother Chen Fan had escaped.

Apparently, it was because of Elder Brother Chen Fan that this group had been sent to rescue him.

At first, all of the memories he was recalling seemed unfamiliar, but as soon as he heard the name Chen Fan, everything suddenly seemed to make sense.

“Where’s Elder Brother Chen Fan?” he asked.

The person to answer the question was the middle-aged man, who looked at Meng Hao kindly as he said, “Your Elder Brother Chen Fan was already taken back to the sect. Hao’er, do you remember everything that happened in the Arcane Pocket Realm?”

Meng Hao looked over at the man and somehow recalled that this was his Master. In response to the man’s words, Meng Hao thought back to everything which had occurred inside, and once again, stabs of pain wracked his mind. Blue veins even popped out on his face.

“Never mind,” the man said. He sighed. “Just try not to think about it. Your Elder Brother Chen Fan experienced the same thing. In fact, so did all of the Chosen who made it out alive.” With that, he flicked his sleeve, leading Meng Hao and everyone else off into the distance.

As they proceeded along, the woman continued to support Meng Hao. She seemed very concerned about him, so much so that she didn’t mind if everyone saw them being so physically close to each other. At first, Meng Hao felt that it was somewhat inappropriate, but then his memories told him that this woman was his beloved Daoist partner, and also the daughter of his Master. They had been married for a long time, and even had a son.

“No. Something doesn’t seem right....” Meng Hao’s head hurt more than ever, and his eyes flickered with confusion. After some time pa.s.sed, the group reached the sect itself.

The Blue Sea Sect was located on a planet that Meng Hao found to be both familiar and unfamiliar.

As soon as he arrived, numerous fellow sect members saw him, and expressions of delight appeared on their faces. They began to rush over, and soon a crowd had formed that escorted him back to his home. There, he saw a young boy about seven or eight years old, who called him “daddy” and rushed over to hug him.

All of it seemed very unfamiliar, but then there was that name Chen Fan, which somehow made everything seem correct.

“No, this is definitely wrong. Something’s not right....” His head throbbed, and off to the side, his Daoist partner and his son looked at him with anxious expressions.

He forced a smile onto his face, and after uttering some rea.s.suring words, he sat down cross-legged. Frowning, he thought back to everything he remembered from his life. His father was an Elder in the sect, and he himself had been born with extraordinary latent talent. After officially joining the sect, he instantly became a Chosen. He progressed rapidly, and by this point his cultivation base was already at the peak Ancient realm, just a step away from the full circle.

His wife was the daughter of his Master, and the two of them were childhood sweethearts. When they got married a few years ago, it lead to widespread envy among their peers.

“No, that’s not right....” he thought, shaking his head. He subconsciously performed an incantation gesture and pushed down on his stomach.

“Eighth Hex!”

Nothing happened. He looked down in surprise, unsure of exactly why he had said the words “Eighth Hex.” Next, he looked through his bag of holding. Everything inside seemed unfamiliar, except for....

A copper mirror.

“What’s this?” he thought, surprised. Then he remembered that after awakening earlier, he had been clutching this very mirror.

“Could it be something I picked up in the Arcane Pocket Realm?” He took out the copper mirror and studied it for a moment. The familiar feeling once again appeared, although it was somewhat different than before.

This world seemed unfamiliar, and everyone in it seemed like strangers, and yet there was also something familiar to it as well. His memories seemed strange, but this copper mirror was different. Within all of the unfamiliarity, it seemed very familiar, as if it were something very important to him.

“Just what exactly is going on...?” he blurted. For some reason, he was starting to get agitated, so much so that his wife took his son out of the room and left him alone.

After some time pa.s.sed, his eyes were bloodshot. He reached up and struck his forehead with a glancing blow. In that exact moment, a knock could be heard on the door, and a worried voice spoke out.

“Little Junior Brother, I'm coming in.” The door opened, and a young man walked in who somehow radiated an ancient feeling. He looked at Meng Hao, mixed emotions on his face, as if he were thinking about the past.

Meng Hao looked up, and recognized the young man, as though he existed, not just in his surface memories, but somewhere deep inside his mind.

“Elder Brother Chen Fan....”