The far shore — a truly existing place, not fabrication nor idle fantasy. Records of gods dwelling there could be found among certain ancient races.
Over the following two months, this stretch of starry sky remained far from peaceful, great battles breaking out constantly, the withering of life and the splattering of blood becoming the cheapest of performances.
Amid this law of the jungle, with every trial-taker in the world striving toward the Dao, and spurred on by the shocking news that one might actually get to behold the gods, all manner of bloody conflict and scheming toward crossing the sea played out on all sides.
This was an age that drove people to madness, and yet also left them in despair — revelry and elegy performed together, like moths throwing themselves into the flame. Were they walking the road to eternal life, or listening to their own funeral dirge? Unable to free themselves, nearly maddened — perhaps the meaning of life lay precisely in this beautiful, obsessive persistence.
Never before in any era had so many heaven’s chosen risen together as in this one. In the past, any one of them would have become the ruler of their entire race, achieving a lifetime of glory, walking toward the very pinnacle of splendor.
To be born wrongly into this era meant a golden age was destined to arrive, but it also foretold the desolation that would follow such a great age — just as when the autumn wind rises and the myriad fruits grow fragrant, in the end all the yellow leaves scatter across the sky, the wind like a cold blade.
Looking across all of history, rarely had there been an age like today’s, one that produced so many young supreme talents — it left people feeling this was unreal. All of them were born with the bearing of heaven’s favored — and yet from another perspective, all of them, too, might well die.
A great age’s elegy — when the final battle-song sounds, all shall fall, collapsing upon the road of the Emperor. Only the one who ascends to the very summit will taste the eternal, solitary desolation, watching as the heroes of his own generation turn to ash and smoke.
“There is only ever one Supreme — it has always been so, since ancient times. In this generation there are simply too many, all vying for empty glory, and it will only become one desolate scene after another in the future.”
Qing Huang Daoren had also come, and naturally, so had the Path Guardians of his own race. With the Ancient Tree of Life having emerged, how could such a divine medicine possibly be absent from the minds of the Grand Sages whose remaining years grew short?
The Bull Demon King, the Stone Man, the Evil God, and others had all come. Even beings of their standing, entering the mythic ancient domain for the first time, had to proceed with great caution, to avoid falling victim to calamity.
All the heroes had gathered, powerhouses from every path making their appearance, and moreover, an endless army of ancient beasts crossed the starry heavens, all searching for the Bitter Sea — yet even after combing through nearly the entire ancient domain, not a single clue had been found.
Some had even begun attacking that reef, hoping to provoke some strange phenomenon in response, but aside from the blazing light emitted by the Dao-imprint left by the Heavenly Venerate of the mythic years — which struck them dead — no other clue or hint emerged at all.
Where in the world was the vast Bitter Sea, and why did so many people searching find nothing at all? It left the crowd both frustrated and helpless. Perhaps, as the legends said, only those favored by the gods could suddenly, on some particular day, behold a sea of the divine, boarding a special small boat bound for the far shore.
“Ahh…”
Deep within the starry expanse, a fierce battle drew to its close — pitiable, and lamentable — one young supreme talent’s story came to an end.
The colossal body of a Golden Giant, ten zhang tall, was struck by a golden tail-lash from the Golden Snake Second Young Lord, shattered bone and bloody mist bursting forth together with golden blood, staining the starry sky a tragic, beautiful red.
The crowd fell utterly silent, a chill running from head to toe at the sight — this had been the Golden Royal Clan, the purest bloodline among the Giant race, whose combat strength had rivaled any across the world, and yet in the end he had become nothing more than a pile of bones upon the road of the Emperor.
The Golden Giant, born with divine strength, extraordinarily powerful, much like the ancestors of the Mythic Era who had split open heaven and earth, possessed a supreme dignity capable of shattering the Six Paths and Nine Heavens — and yet after only a hundred-some exchanges, he had ultimately been defeated.
“This road has always been cruel and bloody. Once defeated, such an outcome is difficult to avoid — and so, at last, the young supreme talents begin to fall,” someone sighed softly.
The Golden Snake Second Young Lord, now in serpentine form, was merely a zhang or so in length, his entire body golden and gleaming, his eyes cold, his forked tongue hissing sharply, making one’s scalp tighten involuntarily.
He shot away like lightning, his golden serpentine body piercing through the void, leaving behind a crowd of awestruck onlookers, staring at his afterimage, none speaking for a long while.
“The Golden Giant has been killed, simply for expressing displeasure at the cold arrogance of the Four Young Lords of the Golden Snake and talking back to them — the Golden Snake Second Young Lord pursued and slew him on the spot!”
Upon hearing this news, Pang Bo clenched his fists tightly. That Golden Giant had gotten along well with him in recent days, having traveled alongside him through the starry void for several days — and now, no sooner had they befriended one another than he had been killed.
Ye Fan too furrowed his brow. Back when he had been about to fight the Stone Man at the Zhenhuang Tower, it had been this very Golden Giant who had intervened to stop the battle from happening. That such a somewhat simple, honest giant should die such a violent death—
“Rest in peace. You and I never grew especially close, but your character suited my temperament well. I will avenge this wrong for you!” Pang Bo said.
“I went to the site and witnessed the aftermath of the battle. The Golden Giant was supremely powerful, and yet he was still decisively slain by the Golden Snake Second Young Lord within a hundred moves — that alone tells us something. We must be careful,” Long Ma said, uncharacteristically cautious in his words.
The Four Young Lords of the Golden Snake possessed strength that defied the natural order, standing among the very finest of the young supreme talents — and provoking even one of them was equivalent to making an enemy of all four.
“I have seen it — the blood-stained starry sky, the corpse-strewn ancient road, the bleeding far shore, countless heroic spirits singing their elegy,” Qing Huang Daoren murmured softly. He should rightfully have entered final rest five hundred years earlier, but had exhausted the last of his inner potential to survive, and now, with little life remaining, possessed a rare and enlightened old age.
He had survived through an ancient secret technique, wringing out the very last radiance of his life. Now, no tonic or medicine could help him any longer. He had witnessed one fragmented corner of the future, and felt endless sorrow because of it.
“Upon entering the far shore, the young supreme talents will all die — few indeed will survive…”
Unfortunately, none could ever truly see through it, could never fully perceive whether there was a genuine path to immortality — no one knew where this golden great age would ultimately lead.
“We’ve found a clue to the Bitter Sea — there is a boundless ocean in another stretch of the void, but unfortunately, there is only a single small boat. Only a few can reach the far shore.”
On this day, a piece of news shook the starry expanse — no one knew how many living beings rushed toward that place, all hoping to carve out a future for themselves, to seize a stroke of fortune.
This was a pitch-black, star-sparse, nearly desolate star region. When numerous powerhouses charged in, all manner of Dao-patterns suddenly surfaced, dragons and serpents rising together, the stars shifting in their courses, heaven unleashing its killing intent.
In an instant, blood rained down, severed limbs scattered, primordial spirits fled skyward in escape, the star region descending into chaos.
In this place, a yin wind howled with fury, blood rain scattered down, vast swaths of life reaped like wheat — no one knew how many cultivators had fallen here.
“This is a deliberately laid killing formation, too vicious — do they mean to bury us all here!?” The crowd, unwilling to accept this, roared in fury, charging outward.
But within this Grand Sage-level killing array of the fourth tier, let alone them — even a true Grand Sage arriving here might well have to drink bitter defeat. In this calamity, several young supreme talents fell.
The Dragon Sparrow beat its wings against the heavens, but ultimately failed to grow into the Grand Sage realm, torn into pieces, filled with unresolved resentment.
Many died in this battle; the survivors fled, unwilling to approach that stretch of starry sky again.
“Hm, having reaped so much life force — in the future, when we truly cross the Bitter Sea and breach the far shore, this will all serve as our guarantee of survival,” said a hoarse voice.
Within the darkness, four Grand Sages manifested. One of them was unmistakably the grey flood-dragon; the other three were the Golden Toad, the Heavenly Dog, and the Roc — their ages all far exceeding the grey flood-dragon’s, all rare creatures from ancient times.
“What a pity — only a few of those young supreme talents came, and only one pressed in deep. They truly carried no shortage of good things on them — I suspect those four array formations on the Tengshe serpents may be connected to their ancient ancestors.”
“What young supreme talents? Back in our day, we too overpowered our entire generation, and yet here we are, still trapped in the Grand Sage realm. Let them boast once they’ve actually become Grand Sages.”
This stretch of starry sky grew calm once more, leaving behind vast swaths of severed limbs, blood dripping everywhere, a truly horrific sight. The four silhouettes, having reaped the life force, departed.
In the blink of an eye, five years passed. This ancient domain had never once known peace — ever more people entered the mythic ancient domain, all searching for the dwelling place of the gods, all hoping to cross the sea and reach the far shore.
But still, no clue was ever found — just as the many beast lords of ancient times had exhausted their efforts and gained nothing in an entire lifetime, no matter how many people came, none could find the Bitter Sea.
“Little life remains to me. To think I would meet my end here.” Within the starry expanse, Qing Huang Daoren sat cross-legged, neither joyful nor sorrowful, his face utterly calm.
Rumble!
He began to transcend into the Dao, no longer able to hold on. That he had managed to survive to this point was already something of a miracle — a Grand Sage living to over eight thousand years of age was rare indeed, even in ancient times.
Every cultivator within this stretch of starry sky was startled, sensing an immense fluctuation, the Great Dao thundering, as if ten thousand horses and a thousand chariots were charging forward, as if endless living beings were wailing in grief.
Ye Fan too was naturally alerted, rushing swiftly toward that place. He had sensed something, for over these five years he had met Qing Huang Daoren on several occasions, listening to him discuss the Dao and share his cultivation experience — he knew the elder’s life was drawing to its end.
“So it truly is Senior Qing Huang!”
Arriving at this stretch of starry sky, Ye Fan sensed a profound sorrow — this was the first time he had witnessed an elder transcending into the Dao, able only to watch helplessly, unable to intervene, unable to change the outcome.
“Senior Qing Huang, so you have finally departed…” Pang Bo too let out a soft sigh. Such a kind and gentle elder, his life now at its end, transcending into the Dao just like this — it left one deeply saddened.
Not only them — many others rushed to the scene as well, but none dared draw close, for it was too dangerous; getting too near risked being swept up and transcending along with him.
The Heaven-Devouring Beast, the Four Young Lords of the Golden Snake, Shen Lan of the Divine Race, Sang Gu, the Blood Beast, the Earth Corpse, and others had all come, and even more ancient beasts watched from within the starry expanse.
The Bull Demon King, Bai Jie Daoren, the Stone Man, the grey flood-dragon, the Golden Toad, and others had arrived as well. They all fell silent — whether enemy or old acquaintance, seeing Qing Huang Daoren about to depart this world, as fellow Grand Sages, their hearts too were moved with sorrow.
Cultivating to this level was no easy feat — a Grand Sage was no ordinary mortal, and yet in the end, it too all amounted to nothing, no different from any ordinary person. After death, all became but a handful of yellow earth and burnt ash alike.
“Little life remains to me. I only wish to see, once, whether there truly is such a thing as an immortal, whether eternal life truly exists — when this golden great age finally comes to its close, what will become of it all?”
Amid that tribulation of transcendence, Qing Huang Daoren’s entire body radiated light, a rain of light bursting forth in sheets, scattering in all directions. He could not be said to feel joy, nor did he carry excessive sorrow — there was only the persistence of an old man whose life was drawing to its end.
The younger generation might not fully grasp it, but the Grand Sages felt all the more a bittersweet ache. At this moment, there were no enemies, only kindred spirits — for they, too, would one day arrive at this very point.
In the end, none of them ever knew whether the very thing they had spent their entire lives pursuing truly existed at all. For them, this was the greatest sorrow of all.
Qing Huang Daoren appeared utterly calm, but those of his own kind understood deeply just how helpless that calm truly was — grief itself had become useless by this point.
“Dare I ask heaven — do immortals exist?”
Qing Huang Daoren asked this question with unwavering persistence, amid his transcendence, his gaze fixed upon the heavens, seeking an answer.
This single question stirred deep grief within all the assembled Grand Sages — through hardship after hardship, they had struggled to reach this point, only to have it end like this, having spent their entire lives seeking an answer that never came.
The assembled cultivators fell completely silent, watching as a Grand Sage withered away, transforming into brilliant rays of light, flying off in all directions, ceaselessly dissolving.
“I only wish… to see, just once, the end of this road — whether there truly are immortals.”
Qing Huang Daoren murmured softly, his eyes dimming, dissolving amid the flames. He could not help but let out a long, skyward roar, and suddenly his body shattered into countless fragments, transforming into a single blazing beam of light.
That was a colossal Green Phoenix, breaking free from his shattered physical form, burning fiercely, striking toward the deep, boundless heavens — delivering the final strike of his life!
“Boom!”
Heaven and earth split apart, the vast cosmos shattering. The colossal Green Phoenix, transformed into light, disintegrated, ceasing to exist.
“I only want to know…”
Beneath the vast starry expanse, only a lingering echo remained, still asking its question, so utterly persistent.
“Fare well, friend of the Dao.” The assembled Grand Sages, even those who were mortal enemies, bitter rivals in life, now fell silent in sorrow, seeing him off.
“Rumble, rumble, rumble!”
Suddenly, heaven and earth responded, and a strange, extraordinary vision descended, startling many into crying out in shock.
Could it be that heaven itself was responding to Qing Huang Daoren’s departure from the world, offering him an answer? People watched, tense with anticipation.
“Eh, a road — is there truly an immortal? What… what are you all seeing?!”
“That is… the Bitter Sea, the far shore — a clue has appeared, right there in that vision!”