Desolate Era (Book 11 - Book 15)

“What is it?” Princess Xiyue, upon hearing the words ‘Ji Ning’, instantly felt curious.

Azurewillow said, “Ji Ning originally wasn’t very interested in the Treasure Auction, but upon hearing that the forces of the Youngflame clan would also be present, he came.”

“Ah?!” Princess Xiyue was amazed. “What’s he going to do?”

“Ji Ning came without changing his appearance. He also brought his spirit-beasts and rode on the carriage Youngflame Nong had owned, straight into the Heavenly Treasures Mountain. It’s as though he was afraid the Youngflame clan wouldn’t realize he was here.” Azurewillow sighed, “In fact, upon hearing that the Youngflame clan would attend, he insisted on attending as well. I feel as though he is setting himself directly against the Youngflame clan. I must say, he truly is quite audacious.”

“Isn’t he in great danger?” Princess Xiyue said hurriedly.

“This Ji Ning has acquired the treasures of the Youngflame clan; he definitely must have quite a few protective treasures,” Azurewillow said. “And… for him to be capable of killing Youngflame Nong means that he is an extraordinary figure. Given his power, it will actually be quite hard for the Youngflame to kill him in the imperial capital.”

Princess Xiyue quickly returned to a clear-minded state. She nodded. “Right. The Imperial Guard maintain a constant watch over the entire imperial capital. Once battle begins, they’ll quickly teleport over.”

“Right. So, if the Youngflame clan wishes to kill Ji Ning, they’ll probably have to send Deathsworn, and a Deathsworn capable of killing him in a single breath at that. Finding this sort of Deathsworn…” Azurewillow shook her head. “Hard. Very hard. He’d have to be a supreme Loose Immortal at the very least, but most likely, even a supreme Loose Immortal wouldn’t necessarily be able to kill him within a single breath. After all, Ji Ning has already displayed prowess in battle sufficient to kill Youngflame Nong and a Primal-level Fiendgod.”

Princess Xiyue laughed as well. She suddenly felt a sense of pride for this cousin of her’s; her cousin truly was formidable.

……

It was already late at night. Stars had appeared in the night sky. The starlight linked together, creating rays of starlight. A tall, thin, narrow-eyed old man was taking a stroll through the skies, surrounded by starlight. It was Patriarch Arcanum.

Beneath him was a quiet, secluded mountain range.

“Floatcloud.” Patriarch Arcanum spoke out, and his voice instantly echoed out, passing through the mountains.

Soon, a figure emerged from within the mountains. It was a bald old man. Upon seeing Patriarch Arcanum, the bald old man immediately bowed with respect. “Floatcloud pays his respects to the Patriarch.”

“Mmm. How many years have you trained for?” Patriarch Arcanum asked calmly.

“It has already been 128,113 years,” the bald elder said respectfully.

“Not bad. Every hundred thousand years constitutes a major accomplishment; many Loose Immortals are unable to make it past a hundred thousand years,” Patriarch Arcanum said.

The bald elder said hurriedly, “When I faced the tribulation that year, my Primal base was damaged. It was all thanks to the help of the tribe that I was able to restore my base quickly, which allowed me to survive until now. However… I’m almost at my limit. Each trial and tribulation poses a major threat to me. I want to reincarnate, but I’m afraid that I will fail in doing so.”

Reincarnation wouldn’t necessarily be successful; if one was lucky, one might succeed, but there were also those who would fail. The Netherworld Kingdom, after all, was not a kind, gentle place.

“I can bestow a dharmic decree of reincarnation unto you,” Patriarch Arcanum said.

“A dharmic decree of reincarnation?” The bald elder instantly revealed a look of surprise and joy.

Dharmic decrees were decrees which were issued by major powers of the Three Realms. Even the Netherwold Kingdom would give face to the dharmic decrees of major powers. Even for the Youngflame clan, such decrees were extremely precious. After all, there were far too many Loose Immortals; the entire Youngflame clan had in excess of a thousand Loose Immortals.

“I need you to accomplish something,” Patriarch Arcanum said.

“Please instruct me, Patriarch,” the bald elder said hurriedly. He had begged the clan repeatedly in the past, but the clan had not given him a dharmic decree of reincarnation. Now that the Patriarch had come in person and said that he would bestow a dharmic decree of reincarnation… this must involve a major affair.

“You know that Ji Ning killed my child, Nong?” Patriarch Arcanum said calmly.

“I do,” the bald elder said hurriedly. How could he not know? Youngflame Nong had been all but guaranteed to be the next Godplume Duke, and had a Fiendgod bodyguard. In the Patriarch’s heart, his status had been far higher than that of a Loose Immortal whose life was nearing its end.

“That Ji Ning is currently in the imperial capital of the Grand Xia.” Patriarch Arcanum instructed, “You are to go there and kill Ji Ning, then go reincarnate.”

“The imperial capital?” The bald elder’s face changed. Kill someone in the imperial capital? Kill Ji Ning?

This was no simple task. After all, Ji Ning was someone who had even managed to kill both Youngflame Nong and a Primal-level Fiendgod. Killing Ji Ning was very difficult, and to kill someone in the imperial capital was incredibly troublesome. If he wasn’t careful, even his soul would be captured and taken away by the Imperial Guard. Most likely, the end result would be that his soul would be shattered.

“I’ll give you time to prepare. Buy or trade for whatever treasures you need. However, I want you to kill Ji Ning within three days,” Patriarch Arcanum said coldly. At the same time, he produced a golden scroll in his hand. “This is the dharmic decree of reincarnation. If you swear an oath to the Dao of the Heavens, I’ll give it to you.”

The bald elder hesitated, looking at the golden dharmic decree. He thought about the fact that he had quite a few treasures; he could sell them off and purchase a few particularly powerful items.

And… since Patriarch Arcanum had personally come, most likely, he had no choice but to accept.

“Let the Dao of the Heavens bear witness! I, Floatcloud, shall kill Ji Ning within three days, and will not reveal any information regarding the Youngflame clan. If I violate this oath, let my soul be shattered.” The bald elder gritted his teeth, then swore the oath.

“Very good.” Patriarch Arcanum nodded, then casually waved his hand, sending the golden scroll flying forward. The bald elder immediately caught it.

“I’ll give you three days… but the sooner the better.” After saying his part, Patriarch Arcanum took a single step, then disappeared within the countless stars of the night sky.





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Book 11, Chapter 14 - First Encounter With Woodpass


The Heavenly Treasures Mountain. The clouds hovering around the nine peaks of the Fortunes Peaks. Atop the clouds were formidable figures from various areas around the world; this truly was a place where the fish swam with the dragons.

“Fellow Daoist Ji Ning.” A violet-robed Yu Qi had just arrived at Ning’s place.

“Oh?” Ning gave him a glance. Earlier, he had sold off treasures worth 1.3 million kilograms of liquefied elemental essence to this man. Ning was quite satisfied with this. Smiling, he said, “Fellow Daoist Yu Qi, come, have a few cups of wine with me.”

“No need,” Yu Qi said with a laugh, then whispered, “I’ve come to inform you, fellow Daoist Ji Ning, that the men of the Youngflame clan have arrived.”

“The men of the Youngflame clan have arrived?” Ning’s eyes lit up. “Where?”

“Right? Where?” Little Qing’s eyes were shining as well.