Although Su Qing did not fully believe that the Lunar Deity before her was truly an incarnation of the actual Lunar Deity, she was more than willing to help resolve the potential trouble brewing in the Moon Palace.
At the very least… she had to hear the specifics of the situation first.
After all, Su Qing could clearly sense that the Moon Palace was harboring some hidden danger.
As for what to do afterward…
Answers were gradually forming in her mind.
However, one had to take things one step at a time, and matters had to be handled one by one…
No matter what, she certainly couldn't afford to be impatient.
Upon hearing Su Qing's words, the Lunar Deity nodded slightly and said, "Since you've put it that way, I shall tell you about it! Chang'e, do you intend to listen and help as well?"
Beside her, Chang'e was startled by the Lunar Deity's question, snapping out of her daze.
In truth, Chang'e had been in a state of utter confusion for some time now…
After listening to the Lunar Deity's earlier explanations, she had essentially come to believe that the figure before them was indeed the Lunar Deity's incarnation.
Yet, even as she believed it, she couldn't help but feel that something was not quite right.
In short, she was extremely conflicted… as if she had overlooked something important.
She kept thinking and thinking… to the point that her mind was overloaded, sending her into a stupor.
Only now, hearing the Lunar Deity's voice, did she manage to pull herself together.
"Ah? What did you say, Star Lord?" she asked, still a bit dazed.
Seeing this, the Lunar Deity wore a helpless expression and said, "You… when will you ever learn to listen to people properly?"
Shaking her head, the Lunar Deity repeated what she had just said.
Upon hearing it, Chang'e crossed her arms and said, "I am the Palace Mistress of this Moon Palace. The affairs of the Moon Palace are my affairs; of course I have to look into them!"
Though she didn't know what the Moon Palace was facing—or about to face—Chang'e certainly couldn't sit idly by and do nothing…
Therefore, she naturally had to be involved.
The Lunar Deity smiled and nodded. "In that case… follow me. In a moment, you will understand exactly what the Moon Palace is facing! You will see what form the signs of the Great Tribulation of Heaven and Earth have taken here."
With that, the Lunar Deity stepped down from her seat and slowly walked toward the exit of the hall.
Seeing this, Su Qing and Chang'e quickly followed.
They trailed behind the Lunar Deity, heading toward a certain part of the Moon Palace.
Along the way, Su Qing and Chang'e discussed the situation via Sound Transmission.
'Do you believe the Lunar Deity's words?' Su Qing inquired.
Beside her, Chang'e was momentarily stunned by the message and couldn't help but glance at Su Qing…
Seeing her reaction, Su Qing knew that the woman had likely placed her full trust in the Lunar Deity.
Su Qing smiled faintly and transmitted, 'So, you believe her completely?'
After a moment of silence, Chang'e finally regained her composure…
She watched the Lunar Deity walking ahead of them.
'I believe her,' she transmitted back, 'but for some reason, my instinct tells me there's still something abnormal about this… I just can't put my finger on what it is, so…'
'That's exactly it…' Su Qing smiled inwardly and transmitted, 'The mutations in the Earth Veins triggered by the signs of the Great Tribulation of Heaven and Earth don't just produce things that are normally difficult to understand; they also involve elements that influence perception. What if—and I'm just saying if—our own perceptions have been subtly influenced?'
'That… that seems unlikely! Even though I know that's a possibility… we are both Heavenly Immortal experts. How could we be affected like that? Besides, if there really was an influence, we should be able to sense it to some degree.' Chang'e was momentarily taken aback by Su Qing's reasoning and instinctively argued against it.
Su Qing didn't get angry or stunned by the rebuttal; instead, she gave her a small smile.
She continued the Sound Transmission: 'As long as it's a possibility, we shouldn't rule it out, right? Besides, didn't you also feel like something was being overlooked? In fact, I feel the same… even now, I still think there's something very strange. In any case, it's better to stay alert… after all, it's better to be safe than sorry!'
Hearing this, Chang'e blinked, momentarily unsure of what to say.
After a brief silence, she transmitted, 'I see… I'll keep my guard up. Also… I must admit that the Lunar Deity didn't lie to you about one thing: the Star Lord's true body is indeed unable to return, trapped within the Jianmu Tree. This is what I was unwilling to tell you for decades.'
Hearing Chang'e's admission, Su Qing nodded slightly. She wasn't overly surprised, nor did she blame Chang'e.
Since she had already been shocked when the Lunar Deity spoke of it earlier, her emotions didn't fluctuate much now. It was simply a feeling of 'just as I expected.'
'You had your reasons for not telling me. I'm sure you thought it was for my own good,' Su Qing transmitted. 'However, you might have underestimated my resilience. In the future, if there's anything like this, you must tell me. Don't carry it all alone.'
Chang'e nodded and said no more.
As for how much of Su Qing's earlier warning she had actually taken to heart, Su Qing didn't know.
At this moment, Su Qing was merely contemplating various 'possibilities' in her mind.
'I only hope that my thoughts and suspicions are wrong!'
Su Qing truly hoped that the Lunar Deity who had returned was indeed an incarnation of the real Lunar Deity and not some strange entity in disguise.
Even if that meant all her previous worrying had been for nothing…
However…
Everything still reeked of a certain strangeness.
This strangeness made it impossible for Su Qing to fully trust the Lunar Deity…
'What I need to do now is follow her and see this through. I need to prove that she really is the Lunar Deity, or… prove that she isn't!'
Su Qing watched the Lunar Deity's back, speaking to herself in her mind.
Then, she composed her thoughts and continued to follow.
They eventually arrived at a dried-up well within the Moon Palace.
Upon seeing the well, Su Qing immediately sensed a powerful aura.
This ominous aura was all too familiar to her… it was the unique scent of the signs of the Great Tribulation of Heaven and Earth.
Without a doubt… this was one of the roots of the trouble in the Moon Palace.
"What exactly is inside this dried-up well?" Su Qing asked with a frown.
As Chang'e approached the well, she also immediately sensed the problem and followed up with a question: "Star Lord, how are we supposed to deal with whatever is inside? Also, has the thing inside already escaped?"
The Lunar Deity looked into the profound depths of the well and shook her head. "At the bottom is the Earth Vein… the mutated Earth Vein of the Moon Palace. As for what form it has taken after the mutation, it's hard for me to say… after all, I've only been back for two days. Furthermore, you two should probably use a vision art to break through the current miasma and see what this place has actually become."
Hearing this, Su Qing was confused. According to the Lunar Deity, this place wasn't the ordinary scene they were currently seeing?
"What do you mean, Star Lord?" Su Qing asked.
The Lunar Deity gave a faint smile. "I mean exactly what I said."
Su Qing's brow furrowed. She pinched a hand seal and performed an illusion-breaking vision art…
As the art took effect, Su Qing could clearly feel the surrounding scenery begin to distort.
A moment later, the surroundings changed completely.
The entire area had become exceptionally dilapidated, as if it had been abandoned for thousands of years.
Su Qing frowned and leaped into the air.
She saw that beyond just this courtyard, a vast area had turned into this ruinous state.
"Was this caused by that dried-up well?" Su Qing frowned, her gaze landing on the Lunar Deity.
However, when her eyes fell upon the Lunar Deity…
She discovered that the Lunar Deity was shrouded in a thick black mist. Beneath that mist was a distorted face, as if she were barely maintaining her current form.
Seeing this, Su Qing's frown deepened…
The Lunar Deity seemed to notice Su Qing's gaze and smiled faintly. "I forgot, this form of mine can also be seen through with illusion-breaking spells… but it doesn't matter. You were bound to discover my current state sooner or later anyway!"
The Lunar Deity didn't seem displeased or panicked that Su Qing had seen through her illusion. Instead, she wore a smile, indicating that she hadn't intended to hide her appearance from the start.
Su Qing was slightly surprised by her reaction. She raised an eyebrow, her mind racing with a thousand thoughts.
After a long while, she looked at the Lunar Deity and nodded, then turned her gaze toward Chang'e…
Chang'e currently wore a look of utter confusion.
However, in the end, she still chose to believe the Lunar Deity before them.
The Lunar Deity looked at the two of them and laughed. "I know you both still have your doubts about me… but that's fine. My situation is indeed quite special. Furthermore, you don't need to trust me completely; you only need to be willing to act together to resolve these signs of the Great Tribulation of Heaven and Earth."
At these words, Su Qing remained silent for a moment before nodding slightly. "I believe you, Star Lord…"
That was what she said… but her internal thoughts hadn't changed much.
Chang'e also stated that she, like Su Qing, believed her.
Seeing this, the Lunar Deity smiled, appearing somewhat gratified.
Su Qing composed herself and looked at the Lunar Deity with confusion. "If this place has become like this, it means the mutation of the Earth Vein is already quite advanced. In that case, how could the Osmanthus Tree not have noticed?"
"Of course she hasn't noticed, because she was the first person to be blinded by the Earth Vein… She is rooted within it, the person closest to it. When the Earth Vein developed problems, she was the first to be affected. By the time she truly notices, it will be too late."
Hearing Su Qing's question, the Lunar Deity's expression turned somber as she shook her head helplessly.
"In the past, she might have noticed immediately. But now, her entire heart is set on teaching her disciple, and she has even opened a small world for her… With such a drain on her magic power, she needs to refine an astronomical amount of spiritual Qi every day. If she could notice under these circumstances, that would be a miracle!"
Su Qing looked at the Lunar Deity with surprise…
She realized that the Lunar Deity before them understood the situation in the Moon Palace far too well.
'Forget it, stop doubting this and that for now. Let's resolve the matter at hand first!' Su Qing shook her head inwardly, admonishing herself.
The urgent matter was the Great Tribulation… the truth or falsehood of the Lunar Deity could be set aside for the moment.
Whether the Lunar Deity was real or fake couldn't be determined yet, but the Earth Vein mutation caused by the signs of the Great Tribulation was right before her eyes.
Su Qing felt she had to distinguish between what was important and what was not.
With that thought, she nodded and said, "Then what should we do? Should we suppress it? Or…"
"Aside from suppression, we have no other choice… after all, the Moon Palace cannot afford to lose this Earth Vein." The Lunar Deity looked at the dried-up well and said, "The Earth Vein is of vital importance. Unless it's beyond saving, we must prioritize suppression. After all, if this Earth Vein is severed, there's no telling what the Moon Palace would become… perhaps even worse than it is now."
Hearing this, both Su Qing and Chang'e nodded…
This course of action was indeed sound.
However, Su Qing asked again, "But if we do that, what about the Osmanthus Tree…"
"You needn't worry about her. She is someone who has existed since ancient times; even if she is blinded now, she wouldn't do anything to harm the Moon Palace. I still trust her on that point…"
The Lunar Deity said calmly, "Besides, she is merely blinded… other than that, the Earth Vein mutation won't affect her too much."
Su Qing fell silent for a moment before nodding. "I understand… In that case, what do we need to do?"
The Lunar Deity didn't answer immediately but remained silent for a long time…
Su Qing watched the Lunar Deity, and seeing her heavy expression, she waited a moment before asking, "What's wrong?"
"It's nothing… just some issues with my body."
The Lunar Deity gave a helpless smile and said, "You don't need to worry about my affairs; I'll handle them myself. I certainly won't harm anyone. Compared to that, the problem at hand is more important."
"As for what to do…"
"I shall set the array, and you two shall assist me!"
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