Desolate Era (Book 22 - Book 24)

“If after a hundred chaos cycles…a thousand chaos cycles…or an even longer period of time…if I ever reach the true apex of power possible for cultivators and become capable of reviving all those who were slain…I swear that I definitely will do so. I’ll make it so that we’ll all be able to sit down and drink with each other once more.” Ning was silently praying to himself.

Because of his lifeblood oath, he had to go to Vastheaven Palace. But even if it wasn’t for the sake of the oath, he still would’ve wanted to leave and travel to more distant realms.

Perhaps one day, he would find a technique which would allow an extinguished truesoul to be brought back to life once more. If he did, he would no longer have any more regrets in life. He would be able to bring back all those who had died…but Ning knew quite well how incredibly hard it would be for him to find and become capable of using such an incredible technique.

However, he had made up his mind. No matter how long it took or how hard it would be, he would continue to go down this path.

……

Thanks to this great war, the Three Realms had lost many of its major powers, Empyrean Gods, and True Immortals. Its vital essence had been dramatically weakened, and even the Celestial Court had been shattered by the war.

And so…

Ji Ning and the other major powers had worked together to remake a new Celestial Court! They had re-established the Netherworld Kingdom! They rebuilt the great Six Paths of Reincarnation!

In rebuilding the Six Paths of Reincarnation, Ji Ning served as the principle power while Subhuti served as the assistant. This was because the Six Paths of Reincarnation involved the power of spacetime. Although Ji Ning’s divine power was the strongest and purest in the Three Realms, he still needed Subhuti’s help. After three years of hard work, the Six Paths of Reincarnation were repaired and remade, allowing the Three Realms to go completely back to normal.

“From this day forth, Immortal cultivators must be extremely restrained and cautious in choosing disciples.”

“The Dao is not to be casually transmitted.”

A veritable ocean of Celestial Immortals, True Immortals, Empyrean Gods, and other cultivators had died as a result of this war. The burden on the Three Realms was significantly lessened as a result. However, everyone knew that if the Three Realms continued to produce Immortal cultivators at as fast a pace as before, it was likely that many new Empyrean Gods and True Immortals would emerge in the not too distant future. Thus, certain changes had to be made. Immortal cultivation had to become a more difficult path, one filled with even more dangers than before.

After the major powers of the Three Realms gave the orders, the entire Three Realms began to change. All Immortal cultivation schools were relocated to mountain tops, and the Immortal cultivation clans and tribes would rarely admit new disciples. To embark upon the path of Immortal cultivation would be a hundred times more difficult than it had been in the past. It required even greater determination and willpower for someone to be permitted into an Immortal school.

Three hundred years passed after the great war.

“The Three Realms has changed.”

An old man in Daoist robes was alongside a white-robed youth. The two were standing atop a cloud, staring at the vast world before them.

The Daoist robed elder let out a sigh. “The Three Realms has become more peaceful as a whole. Immortal cultivation has become more difficult, which means that fewer and fewer Immortal cultivators are around to take part in mortal wars and battles. At most, you’ll only see the occasional Zifu Disciple taking part. Now that there are so few Immortal cultivators, there are also much fewer people fighting over resources and natural treasures, making conflicts amongst cultivators much rarer than in the past as well.”

“Yes.” Ji Ning nodded.

It was as though the Three Realms had turned over a new leaf.

“Are you truly going to leave the Three Realms?” Subhuti looked at Ning.

“I have to leave.” Ning nodded. “I have no other choice.”

Subhuti understood what Ning was hinting at, knowing that Ning had to be under some sort of compulsion. “Then what of the Three Realms? Your daughter?”

Ning said, “I’ll set up an Immortal estate very close to the Three Realms in the primordial chaos. My Primaltwin will stay there permanently and protect the Three Realms. My true body will traverse that spatial vortex and journey to the Badlands Territory. Everything else aside, the Mindlord remains a source of potential trouble. If I ever have the chance to kill him, I will.”

“Good.” Subhuti revealed a hint of delight on his face.

For someone was powerful as Ji Ning, going out adventuring through the primordial chaos was quite normal. Mother Nuwa was born an Elder God and thus did not have a Primaltwin. Ji Ning, however, had started an ordinary mortal and slowly had risen to power. Although he was going to leave, he would only send his true body out adventuring; his Primaltwin would remain behind,c lose to the Three Realms.

“How strong is your Primaltwin, compared to your true body?” Subhuti asked.

“With my Primaltwin here, we wouldn’t need to worry even if we encounter more figures on the level of Old Man Yuan,” Ning said.

Although his Primaltwin was a bit weaker than his true body, it was still a first-tier Ancestral Immortal. When using the ‘Heartsword stance’, it absolutely had the power of a supreme Elder God.

“Alright.” Subhuti suddenly glanced downwards and smiled. “See what your daughter is doing?”

Ning glanced downwards as well, his gaze piercing through the Void. He saw Brightmoon tease and toy with an ordinary scholar in a mischievious manner. She was pretending to be an ordinary young lady from a mortal clan of nobles, and she and her ‘maidservant’ were both teasing this ordinary mortal scholar.

Ning laughed.

His daughter was able to live freely within the Three Realms, to be happy and carefree. Ning was satisfied. In the past, his daughter had been forced to hide within the Crescent world, and if they had lost the war she would’ve been forced to risk her life adventuring through the primordial chaos. Ning truly did not wish to see this happen.

“She’s doing well. That’s all I want.” Ji Ning smiled.





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Book 24, Chapter 1 - Leaving the Three Realms


An Immortal estate located within the primordial chaos. This estate was a few kilometers in size, and it was filled with creeks, small streams, flowers, and grass.

“Father, will you live here permanently in the future? Won’t you return to the Three Realms?” Brightmoon held onto Ji Ning’s arm as she looked curiously at the area.

“Yes. I plan to enter secluded meditation.” Ning nodded and smiled. “It will be a long time before I return to the Three Realms.”

The lifeblood oath he had sworn was that he would leave the Three Realms within a thousand years of becoming an Elder God. Once this part of the oath became active, his soul would instantly become bound by its power. Even his Primaltwin would be affected. This was why, even though Ning intended to have his Primaltwin stand guard over the Three Realms, it couldn’t actually live within it. It had to reside in a part of the primordial chaos that was right next to the Three Realms.

Only when he finished his lifeblood oath and actually carried Northrest’s final message to Vastheaven Palace would he be released from it.

“Oh. That works as well, I guess. I’ll just spend a lot of time here in the future. This is actually my first time journeying into the primordial chaos.” Brightmoon was rather excited. “Father, I’m going to go take a look at some other places.

“Go ahead.” Ning nodded.

“Young master.” Autumn Leaf and Uncle White had accompanied Brightmoon here. They knew Ning very well…and they knew it made no sense that he had to remain within the primordial chaos while engaging in secluded meditation.