Within the dim void, dense fog swirled, with nebulae faintly visible here and there; within the source of the light hung a grand hall, with nine suns suspended above it, arrayed in a fan shape.
Beneath the nine suns, a black throne stood upon a high platform, upon which an imposing figure sat.
He was clad in armor, with a broad physique, wearing a divine crown reminiscent of a Qilin’s head, from which emerged his cold and authoritative countenance.
White hair fluttered at the sides of his face, as he supported his head with one hand in a languid pose, continually exhaling turbid breath like a true dragon taking a brief rest.
A bolt of lightning struck from the depths of darkness, hitting the grand hall and transforming into a winged man; he was dressed in dark cyan Daoist robes, with a grim expression and long hair cascading freely, resembling a fierce ghost.
In front of the seated figure, the winged man seemed so diminutive, like facing a towering mountain.
“My lord, it appears that the power of the Immortal Gods is intervening in this universe,” the winged man spoke with a grave tone, clearly wary of the Immortal Gods.
The seated figure slowly opened his eyes, his pupils gold in color, which made him look even more majestic and overwhelming.
“Immortal Gods? Ridiculous, in this Great Thousand World there is but one Immortal God; he would not interfere in internal strife. Besides, this Great Thousand World betrayed the Immortal God in the past. The dissatisfaction of the Immortal God with this world is not so easily dissipated.”
His gaze shifted to the depths of the universe, the scenery of the Celestial Spirit Great World reflecting in his pupils.
Hearing this, the winged man frowned and asked, “Do you mean someone is masquerading in the name of the Immortal Gods?”
The seated figure replied, “Both the Heavenly Dao and the Immortal Gods wield their power despotically; they would not engage in so many roundabout tactics. However, it is just as well, let them test the depth of the Celestial Spirit Great World. Our task is to capture the remnants of the Long Clan.”
The winged man pressed on, “But within the Celestial Spirit Great World lies the Celestial Dao Golden Core; why not take it for ourselves?”
The seated figure did not respond again, and simply closed his eyes.
The grand hall fell into silence, the nine suns still blazing fiercely, bringing endless light to the void.
Suddenly.
The winged man seemed to sense something, swiftly turning around to look, only to see in the deep darkness of the void a pair of vast eyes staring back at them.
Those eyes were like the eyes of the universe, making the nebulae in their presence pale in comparison.
“The descendant of the Long Clan is indeed in the Celestial Spirit Great World, and he will vie for the Celestial Mandate,” a voice, ancient and strong, resounded.
This voice was unmistakably He Qingsong’s, but it was stronger, as though a supreme deity proclaiming the laws of the world to all living beings.
The seated figure opened his eyes and looked, mocking, “So it’s you; I hadn’t expected you to still not have given up the chase.”
The vast eyes in the void continued, “Ye Tianji, we could join forces. Perhaps the people of the Long Clan are hiding under the employ of the Supporting Dao Sword Venerable. If so, you cannot avoid dealing with him — an entity even the Silent Destruction God Emperor suffered a setback from. I promote the Celestial Mandate, and you eradicate the enemy’s remnants. Our actions do not conflict.”
The figure referred to as Ye Tianji remained unflustered, merely staring calmly at those eyes, his thoughts inscrutable. Read exclusive adventures at My Virtual Library Empire
The void returned to silence once more.
“Unless you tell me exactly who the descendant of the Long Clan is, I shall not readily believe you,” Ye Tianji finally spoke.
The vast eyes in the void narrowed slightly, hearing Ye Tianji continue, “But you have another option; you could concede the Celestial Dao Golden Core to me. I might then consider assisting you.”
The Celestial Dao Golden Core!
The expression in the eyes of the void suddenly turned cold, while Ye Tianji closed his eyes again.
The winged man on the grand hall could not help but smile, looking mockingly at the vast eyes in the void, waiting for a decision.
For a long time.
The voice of the Void’s Great Eye spoke, “Not now. When the Celestial Dao Golden Core appears, I will not stop you but let you enter.”
Upon hearing this, Ye Tianji’s face revealed a defiant smile.
…
Another thirty years had passed.
At the age of one thousand nine hundred and forty-three, Gu An was playing chess with the Nine-Fingered Divine Monarch, holding the Green Hero Travelogue in one hand and a chess piece in the other, his eyes on the book.
The nearly defeated Nine-Fingered Divine Monarch raised his eyes to Gu An and said dissatisfied, “Do you need to treat our chess game so dismissively?”
Gu An replied, “Please, you’re the one who insisted on playing with me.”
Although Profound Celestial Intent was a Nirvana Realm Great Cultivator, his reputation had been drowned out by the increasing number of Great Cultivators in the Supreme Sect. He seldom returned from his travels and would send Gu An books from time to time; Gu An was reading first-hand, new releases, and by the time he finished, the Green Hero Travelogue would only then start circulating in the market.
This volume of the story was particularly brilliant. The hero encountered a woman with deep-seated enmity toward him. They chased each other at sea and ultimately encountered an attack from a Great Demon. Both were poisoned and temporarily lost their cultivation levels. They ended up stranded on a deserted island, entangled in love and hate. Even without other characters, watching their interactions with the island’s demons was also very intriguing.
“Jue Luo Sword Monarch holds eight volumes of the Theory of Heaven and is just missing the last one. He waits inside his Zizai Sword City, saying that if he loses, he will surrender all eight volumes. Yet, even so, the final volume of the Theory of Heaven has not revealed itself.”
The Nine-Fingered Divine Monarch sighed and his face was filled with admiration when he mentioned Jue Luo Sword Monarch.
His realm was worlds apart from Jue Luo Sword Monarch, which is why he held such reverence. Furthermore, having played chess with him before, he felt a connection and especially paid attention to news about Jue Luo Sword Monarch.
Gu An casually asked, “What? Are you very interested in the True Immortal Inheritance? You could challenge him too, what if you won?”
“How could I possibly win? I’m just at the Wandering Immortal Realm, while he exists at the Ninth Heaven of the Immortal Path. I could cultivate for tens of thousands of years and still might not reach his level,” said the Nine-Fingered Divine Monarch, his eyes wide.
Seeing that he did not want to continue the chess game and was changing the subject, Gu An said irritably, “Tens of thousands of years? Do you think you can live that long?”
The Nine-Fingered Divine Monarch was so annoyed that he stood up and left with a flick of his sleeve.
Gu An curled his lip and thought to himself that he really lacked sportsmanship in chess.
He stood up and walked towards the outside of the dojo. Along the way, disciples and Cultivators who saw him all paid their respects.
He walked toward the mouth of the valley, where a woman was pacing at this moment.
This woman was Ye Lan’s disciple, Ye Qingxue.
Nearly a thousand years old, she had reached the Divinity Transformation Realm Cultivation Level. Two thousand years ago, she could have roamed freely across the continent, but in today’s Supreme Sect, a Cultivation Level of Divinity Transformation Realm was not as prestigious as some exceptionally talented new disciples.
Dressed in a yellow robe, Ye Qingxue saw Gu An’s figure from afar, and she was immediately filled with joy. Just as she was about to step forward, she hesitated again.
As a child, she had been disrespectful and hostile towards Gu An. She felt that her master, being so powerful, shouldn’t have to curry favor with Gu An. But ever since she realized that Gu An was the Supporting Dao Sword Venerable, she understood how ridiculous she had been. Because of this, she dared not see Gu An anymore. Since her master’s death, she had kept this relationship secret and did not speak of it.
Apart from the Elder Hall, no one knew of her relation to Gu An.
Seeing Gu An walking towards her, Ye Qingxue felt nervous and apprehensive.
Could it be that her uncle-master had foreseen her coming and had specifically come to meet her?
She thought it highly likely, given that her uncle-master was the Supporting Dao Sword Venerable. But she also feared that she might be overthinking it.
With her relationship with her uncle-master not being particularly close, he certainly had many similar relationships. Surely he couldn’t take special care of every junior?
Ye Qingxue stood there, extremely anxious, feeling caught between a rock and a hard place.