The Jade Pendant

"Is there? Senior Brother Li, where is there a jade pendant?"

In the courtyard of the Bai family home, Bai Lingmiao looked at Li Huowang with confusion, as if she didn't quite understand what he had just said.

Hearing Bai Lingmiao utter such words, Li Huowang was frozen on the spot.

How could she not know? He had given it to her once.

Though it had been a long time, Li Huowang remembered it clearly. At Qingfeng Temple, he had indeed found that jade pendant—the one representing the Great Liang imperial family—in Xuan Yang's dwelling.

But now she didn't remember. Something that had definitely, truly happened—she actually didn't remember it.

"No. This is very wrong."

If what had happened before—how Doumu's conspiracy, along with his experiences on that great ship, had vanished when Ji Zai seized the True-and-False Heavenly Law from her—then this time, the jade pendant changing in Bai Lingmiao's mind was definitely not normal.

Why would Ji Zai, who had only just gained control over truth and falsehood, randomly turn a jade pendant false for no reason?

It didn't make sense. Or rather, it wasn't just the memory of the jade pendant that had vanished along with Doumu's True-and-False Heavenly Law.

Li Huowang's gaze focused on Bai Lingmiao's face, wrapped in its white bandage.

"Miao Miao, call over all the senior and junior brothers who came out of Qingfeng Temple with us. I have something to ask them."

Although Bai Lingmiao was a little puzzled, she still nodded gently. "Mm, alright."

Soon, in the Bai family courtyard, everyone who had come out from Qingfeng Temple had gathered. They too were a bit confused as to why Li Huowang wanted to see them.

Li Huowang glanced at each of their faces, then picked up a pre-sketched sheet of rice paper beside him. On the paper was a round jade pendant he had just drawn with a brush.

"When we left Qingfeng Temple, did any of you see me carrying this jade pendant? Or, do you have any recollection of a pendant that looks like this?"

"What's this? A jade pendant? Never seen it. How could people like us ever afford something like that?"

"Yeah, if I'd had one, I'd have pawned it for traveling money long ago."

Soon, from the words of the other senior and junior brothers, Li Huowang discovered that the memory of the jade pendant had not only vanished from Bai Lingmiao's mind but from everyone's.

"Master, is this pendant important? Where did you lose it? I'll help you find it." Lyu Xiucai said, currying favor.

Li Huowang shook his head. After thinking for a moment, he spoke again. "That's all. You can go."

Although Ji Zai wouldn't say anything, Li Huowang felt he had begun to glimpse something from these two incidents.

But he still needed further confirmation of this guess.

Li Huowang's words left the others utterly baffled. Scratching their heads in confusion, they turned and left.

Bai Lingmiao also couldn't figure out what Li Huowang was thinking right now. Concern crept onto her face. Could it be that this Lotus Head from the Fangxian Dao wasn't working?

"Miao Miao, get me a bird. I need to ask someone well-informed for details." As he spoke, Li Huowang pulled from his body a talisman engraved with a crescent moon.

The person Li Huowang sought was none other than Liu Zongyuan of the Moon Gate, the highly informed man he had worked with on a case before.

Li Huowang had expected it would take at least a few days to get a reply. But to his surprise, Liu Zongyuan showed up that very evening, displaying unusual eagerness.

"Aiya, aiya, Brother Er Jiu! You've truly leaped over the dragon gate now, actually getting in with the Great Liang Emperor."

"No wonder you seemed so indifferent to the Sitian Jian post—your real scheme was even bigger. Brilliant! Absolutely brilliant!"

Liu Zongyuan showered Li Huowang with flattery, his attitude now much more respectful.

Clearly, he could tell that this madman from the Ao-Jing Sect was different from the Er Jiu he had known before.

The Sitian Jian, which stood above imperial authority, wasn't exactly thrilled about whoever sat on the throne.

But if the man in front of him was the emperor's blood-sworn confidant—well, then a mere foot soldier like himself couldn't even catch up to his dust.

"Have a seat. It's been a while. I need to trouble you with some questions."

"What talk is that? We shared a life-and-death bond back then! Ask whatever you want!" Liu Zongyuan said, thumping his chest.

Li Huowang looked at the wooden mask on Liu Zongyuan's face, thought for a moment, and then slowly spoke. "Back in the capital, when the Eye of the Mountain God was destroyed by the Zuowandao—you remember that, right?"

"Of course! An incident that big, I couldn't forget it even if I wanted to."

"Good. Tell me everything you know. Don't leave out a single word!"

"Alright, I'll tell you. This goes back over half a year now…"

As Liu Zongyuan spoke, a look of dawning understanding gradually appeared on Li Huowang's face.

If there had been a chance that his fellow disciples had simply misremembered, then the news he got from Liu Zongyuan completely confirmed his theory.

The account Liu Zongyuan gave was entirely different from what Li Huowang had witnessed himself back then. It wasn't just a minor discrepancy—it was a fundamental change in the very origin of the entire incident, all the way down to its roots.

And this was enough to prove that, along with the Yin-Yang Doumu's True-and-False Heavenly Law, everything about Doumu in this world had been altered. This included the historical events associated with her—all of them thoroughly changed.

Thinking about this, Ji Zai's earlier words echoed in Li Huowang's mind: "What is true? What is false? How do you prove it? Show me. Just show me."

The cascade of changes triggered by a shift in the Heavenly Laws was far beyond what Li Huowang had imagined. This wasn't just about the Heavenly Calamity.

"Does that mean… every time a Heavenly Calamity occurred in the past, this kind of change also happened? I just never noticed before?" The thought made Li Huowang's scalp tighten. He had stumbled onto something momentous.

In this thoroughly maddened world, even the supposedly fixed past was not eternal. Instead, with every Heavenly Calamity, with every shift in the Heavenly Laws, it was constantly being altered.

Siming. Heart-Pan. Siming… Heart-Pan…

Li Huowang ignored Liu Zongyuan, who was still rambling on beside him. He paced around the room, racking his brain.

Then, suddenly, he remembered what he had written on the wall back at the Sitian Jian.

"By imperial decree, the Sitian Jian alone shall print and sell almanacs. No private printing is permitted. Violators shall have their entire clan moved."

Li Huowang reached behind his back and pulled out the Spine Sword, the one that connected to the Great Qi. He stood it upright in front of him and studied it carefully.

"Uh… Brother Er Jiu? Are you alright?"

Liu Zongyuan felt that this guy in front of him was now acting completely insane. He couldn't help but hesitate—was it really a good idea to keep getting closer to this man?

Li Huowang paid him no attention. He suddenly turned the sword horizontal, muttering to himself, gazing at Zhuge Yuan's shrunken head on the pommel.

"Brother Zhuge… what if there's a possibility…"

"What if… the Great Qi you saved is just one of those histories that vanished because of a change in the Heavenly Laws?"