Time flows on without cease, and the immortal road knows no mercy. Some people, some things — they are destined to slowly fade from memory, gradually dimming. The higher reaches of the immortal road are a place of solitary cold.

Time passes swiftly. They had parted for decades — a full human lifetime had elapsed. Yet in a foreign land beyond his home domain, an old friend was encountered, and Ye Fan’s heart was a storm of mixed feelings, as though a long-sealed door had been pushed open.

That vanished youth, those unforgettable old times — day after day, dusk after dusk — like a glimmer of fleeting light, like a flowing river, passing by without a sound.

Shadow after shadow, vivid face after vivid face — some had already died, some had gone without a trace. All of them now surfaced together in his heart. They had parted in the prime of their youth, there at the crossing of heaven’s road.

Nine dragons pulling an ancient bronze coffin — origin unknown, destination unknown — ascending the road to heaven, treading the road of conquest, sending a group of people’s life trajectories turning toward unpredictable directions.

People of the past, things of former days — so many years had gone by, and the memories had nearly been sealed away. Yet, who could have expected to meet again here? The mark of a chapter of life had been carved into his heart.

“Ziwen!” Ye Fan stood on the shore, calling out loudly toward the divine chariot crossing the sea on its return.

Jade-blue waves stretched ten thousand li. The South Sea was boundless to the eye, the sound of waves unceasing, vast and magnificent, grand as ten thousand cavalry surging forward.

Above the jade-blue sea, nine azure luan birds — each one extraordinarily divine — spread their wings to strike the sky, cleaving the firmament, pulling a divine chariot rumbling and rolling forward.

Within that carriage was a young man with fair skin, hair bound with a golden crown, strands flowing freely in the wind, his eyes bright and clear. He was clearly no ordinary person.

“You’ve mistaken me for someone else.” He cast a wary glance in their direction, drove the nine azure luan birds, turned about, and retreated swiftly.

“To meet an old friend in a foreign land — Wang Ziwen, why do you flee from someone you know?” Ye Fan’s expression showed puzzlement.

The jade sea met the sky. The waves were grand and vast. The nine azure luan birds pulled the divine carriage, rushing swiftly toward a domain gate that appeared out of thin air, and in the blink of an eye disappeared within — vanishing without a trace.

Clearly, this person harbored misgivings. He had deployed an array platform, intending to flee across the great sea, unwilling to linger even for a moment.

“Want me to knock him out of the sky?” Long Ma asked.

“Leave it to me,” said another ancient beast nearby, releasing a powerful surge of holy might, poised to swat apart heaven and earth and drag that divine carriage out.

Ye Fan waved his hand to stop them, somewhat dazed. “I was careless — this is clearly a different young man. He simply bears an extremely strong resemblance and carries the same aura.”

He understood this was not quite a case of mistaken identity either. This young man looked too much like Wang Ziwen in his youth, and their bloodlines matched — without question, this was his descendant.

“The passing of time… he already has offspring, and they’ve grown up. I wonder how these years have treated him, and why he ended up on this ancient star.” Ye Fan had many questions in his heart.

But he did not immediately give chase to have a look. He simply left a “thought imprint” he could follow at any time, not wishing to startle his old friend’s child just then.

The Nine Dragons Pulling the Coffin had altered the fate of an entire group. More than ten of them had died along the way. Several had perished in the six grotto-heavens of the Yan Kingdom. In the end, only a dozen or so had begun a different life.

Zhang Wenchang had apprenticed under the Profound Reclusive Peak. Liu Yiyi had entered the Jade Pool of the Northern Territory. Kai De was reciting sutras on Mount Sumeru. Pang Bo had set foot on the ancient road through the starry sky. And now, Ye Fan too had arrived at this place.

Li Xiaoman had survived — yet Ye Fan had knocked her down into the Ancient Forbidden Wilderness. In this life, they would probably never meet again.

In those days, Ye Fan’s group had been forced into the Ancient Forbidden Wilderness to gather medicinal herbs. Wang Ziwen, Zhou Yi, and Zhang Ziling had become lost in an immortal palace in the outer domain of the forbidden grounds, and they had never appeared again in all the decades that followed.

After a parting of so many years, to unexpectedly learn that Wang Ziwen might also be present on this ancient life star — it truly left Ye Fan’s emotions difficult to settle.

“What happened? How did he get from the Northern Dipper all the way to a star like this?”

Such a distance was immense — crossing who knew how many star systems, from the other shore of the starry sky to this side of the ancient road. It was enough to fill anyone with bewilderment.

These sealed-away old memories had been unlocked. Ye Fan stood there for a long time, settling his mind. He understood that he would soon be able to unravel many mysteries. He was going to visit his old friend.

“This star is truly remarkable — can you all feel it? The spiritual energy is dense to a frightening degree. Meditating on the Dao law here, one can hear divine sounds ringing in one’s ears.” The Light Clan Saint among Ye Fan’s twelve spoke.

The others had of course felt it as well. Their bodies bathed in the dense spiritual energy, and faint rays of rosy light flushed through their meridians, passing through their pores and entering their bodies on their own.

“To perceive the transformations of the great Dao — is this the purpose of our trial here?” the Nine-Tailed Crocodile Dragon asked in astonishment and uncertainty.

The Ferrying Guide had made it clear: as long ages passed, some ancient stars had grown unsuitable for cultivation, while others had flourished from antiquity to the present day, never declining, and remained ideal for pursuing the Dao.

The Human Race’s Tenth Pass — the birth star of the Nine-Tailed Crocodile Dragon — was a prime example of a place very suited to cultivation, for it had never undergone major upheaval. The great Dao there was imperishable, the cultivators were strong, and Saints were never scarce.

The most desolate ancient stars, on the other hand, had nearly seen their paths of cultivation severed. It took all manner of ancient methods and divine hidden treasuries to cultivate even one powerhouse at the Dragon Transformation level, and that was already considered to be defying heaven.

Long Ma said: “This ancient star is even more flourishing than the Human Race’s Tenth Pass. Living beings here are close to the great Dao — they easily meld with it. There must be peerless powerhouses here.”

This was also the reason the cultivation levels of those who set foot on the ancient road through the stars varied so greatly. In some ancient lands, having a few Saints descend was nothing remarkable. In others, even someone at the Dragon Transformation or Great Ability level setting out on the journey was extraordinary.

One thing people could at least be grateful for: in recent years, the heavens and earth had changed, and even some ancient lands that had seemed hopeless had begun to receive the favor of the great Dao, gradually reviving.

The sound of the waves was constant. A sea breeze carrying a briny, salty smell blew toward them. Ye Fan spread his powerful divine sense to explore this ancient life land.

This ancient star was less than one hundredth the size of the Northern Dipper, yet it was many times larger than Earth. With only the slightest channeling of his power, he could already hear the sound of heaven and earth in harmony, the great Dao resonating.

Several hundred li out in the ocean, there was a flood dragon keeping a close eye on them. It had reached the Saint King realm — this was likely the “South Sea Dragon King.”

“We will not offend if others do not offend us. You must not stir up trouble. There are very likely Great Sage-level beings on this star.” Ye Fan reminded his twelve Saints.

In the universe there were countless star regions, and ancient life stars were finite. Up to this point, this was the most suitable star for cultivation that Ye Fan had discovered. It very likely harbored peerless powerhouses.

To perceive the transformations of the great Dao, one had to experience many different types of ancient stars — flourishing ones, barren ones, and all the rest — before one could gradually discern patterns and discover fundamental truths.

Ye Fan and the twelve Saints set out from the shore, heading deep inland.

They had not traveled far when they passed through a cluster of volcanoes. Billowing flames gushed, and lava gurgled, red and eye-stinging. In an ancient cave, they spotted four fire crows — all on the verge of achieving Saint-hood.

Continuing forward several hundred li, they came across a few small Daoist temples. The cultivators inside were not weak — two of them had reached the Great Perfection King level.

As they entered a towering mountain range, mist and haze hung all around. They encountered a giant serpent several thousand zhang in length, swallowing and exhaling an enormous serpent pearl — it had actually reached the Saint realm.

All along the way, they encountered many cultivators, and saw a number of ancient cave dwellings. Time and again they sensed Saints, which left them amazed.

“Just from traveling along the road, without necessarily visiting any sacred ground or divine dynasty, we’ve already encountered several Saints. This ancient star — not even particularly vast in its domain — is truly astonishing.” One of the twelve Saints, an ancient beast, remarked.

Long Ma grumbled with grievance: “Even beneath the same vast universe, how can the treatment of people be so vastly different! Consider the star I was born on — the spiritual energy had dried up, and producing even one Dragon Transformation or Great Ability cultivator was enough to have them honored as the supreme powerhouse of the age. But here? It would be hard not to produce a Saint.”

On this star, beautiful peaks were everywhere, wreathed in drifting immortal mist, adorned with cascading waterfalls and flowing springs — scenery beautiful and spiritual energy hazy.

There were many ancient cliffs. Those who sat upon them could hear the sound of Dao resonating in their ears, as though someone was chanting an immortal scripture, drawing one into a deep state of Dao comprehension. Over time, day by day and year by year, one’s Dao cultivation would naturally deepen without cease.

On other planets, such places would be regarded as sacred earth. But here, they were not even considered remarkable. Every time Ye Fan passed through such a spot, he would close his eyes to absorb the feeling.

Half a day later, they arrived at a vast ridge — a gigantic mountain range stretching tens of thousands of li, with many cave dwellings hidden within. They sensed at least no fewer than four currents of Saint-level presence.

“This should be considered a sacred ground.”

Naturally they had nothing to fear, but they did not wish to stir up trouble without cause. They crossed over and continued forward for a great distance until they discovered an enormous city — imposing and grand, bustling within, very prosperous.

“The nine azure luan birds are in the city.” The Nine-Tailed Crocodile Dragon said.

Ye Fan nodded. He had come precisely for those nine azure luan birds — he needed to find Wang Ziwen. Earlier he had simply wanted to get a general sense of this ancient star’s situation.

He extended his powerful divine sense, pouring it like a tide toward where the nine azure luan birds were, then swept through that entire ancient dwelling complex. His eyes shot out two beams of divine lightning.

“Wang Ziwen — it is him!”

In the next moment, Ye Fan entered the city, arriving at a grand palace complex, and appeared in a great hall, gazing at that familiar face before him.

“Ye Fan, it’s really you!” Wang Ziwen leapt to his feet, his eyes filled with a look of sheer disbelief, his face overflowing with emotion — a sharp contrast to the shrewd composure he had always carried in the past.

Beside him was a young man who looked extremely like him — none other than the young man they had seen in the South Sea not long before. He had evidently already reported the matter to his father.

“So many years have passed — never did I imagine there would be a day of reunion between old friends.” Wang Ziwen had refined, handsome features. Time had left few marks on his face. He now possessed powerful cultivation, and had clearly attained Saint-hood.

“Father, who is he?” Just then, a young woman walked in from outside the great hall — bright eyes and white teeth, graceful and lovely, remarkably beautiful and lively.

“This is… your uncle. Do you still remember what I told you about the other shore of the starry sky? We come from the same place.” Wang Ziwen was overwhelmed with feeling, his voice even slightly trembling. He had his two children come forward to offer Ye Fan their greetings.

“To think you have children now — and they’ve already grown into adults.” Ye Fan was equally overcome with emotion, lamenting that the years pass like water. So many years had flowed away, and he had never imagined he would meet Wang Ziwen here.

The elder brother, Wang Chen, received and handled matters with something of his father’s manner — seasoned and shrewd. The younger sister, Wang Xi, was bright and lively. Her large eyes rolled about constantly, boldly fixing on Ye Fan and staring at him without cease.

Wang Ziwen explained: “Recently we’ve run into some trouble. Wang Chen went to the South Sea on my behalf to seek aid. When he encountered you, he mistook your group for interceptors sent to kill him — and so he fled straight back.”

Ye Fan nodded. He had many questions. He wondered why this old friend had ended up on this ancient star, having come all the way to the depths of the universe. He asked: “Ziwen, what happened back then?”

“I, Zhou Yi, Lin Jia, Zhang Ziling, and Li Xiaoman all entered the immortal palace in the outer domain of the Ancient Forbidden Wilderness together. A great deal certainly happened. Each person’s opportunity was very different.” Wang Ziwen said, then fixed his gaze on Ye Fan and cried out in shock: “You… you’ve reached the eighth heaven of the Saint realm!?”

He was deeply startled. He himself had obtained a tremendous opportunity in the immortal palace of the outer forbidden domain, and had then cultivated and broken through on an ancient star like this one — so close to the great Dao — and had only barely achieved Saint-hood. He knew firsthand just how arduous this road was.