The Heavenly Court’s might grew with each passing day. Ye Fan had defeated every opponent under heaven — even the Great Emperor of the current age had fallen before him. This shook the nine heavens and ten earths, and ten thousand realms erupted in clamor.
Defeating the demon emperor — this event’s influence spread far and wide, reverberating through the cosmos for the next several decades, causing every clan to tremble with dread and their divine spirits to quake.
After this battle, Ye Fan stood supreme as if he were a god on high. Whenever a divine decree issued forth, every corner of the cosmos submitted and complied — not a single clan dared to resist the will of the Heavenly Court.
Yet the Heavenly Court did not grow arrogant or overbearing because of this. As before, eradicating the Life Forbidden Zones remained their goal, and they never became entangled in conflicts with other great sects and teachings.
And through this battle, the mood across the cosmos gradually shifted. This age truly had far too many outstanding individuals. The Golden Crow’s attainment of the Dao and his ascension to become the demon emperor had originally extinguished people’s hopes.
Now Ye Fan had defied heaven itself and defeated a Great Emperor in battle — causing all the peerless geniuses of the age to let their eyes shine bright and their expressions change. They firmed the conviction within their hearts.
Indeed, in the years that followed, Huo Qizi, Yin Tiande, and the others all threw themselves into bitter cultivation, doing everything to raise their own cultivation levels, seeking to go one step further atop the already hundred-foot pole of achievement.
The Heavenly Court’s glory years had begun. From this point, they stood undefeated under heaven, with all eight directions coming to pay homage. Their fearsome renown resounded throughout the cosmos, and every cultivator in the world held them in reverence and submission.
A blink of an eye, and more than two hundred years had passed since the battle to sweep away the Forbidden Zones. Ye Fan had approached nearly two thousand years of age, truly a warrior without equal — no one could stand against him. Looking down upon the vast expanse of the cosmos, it was difficult to find a single true opponent.
During this time, the Heavenly Court developed at a rapid pace. What had once been spoken of — “Bodhi Seeds spreading everywhere, faith gathering, the founding of an everlasting sect” — was gradually coming true. Every day, a magnificent sound of scripture recitation rang out from the Heavenly Court’s altars.
There stood a cauldron there. After Ye Fan’s Ten Thousand Things’ Primordial Qi had been reforged, it was placed upon the altar to receive the power of faith from all eight directions. Within it, faith accumulated like an ocean and vast as primordial chaos — boundless and without limit.
The power of faith condensed into liquid form, vast and immense. It had caused this cauldron itself to undergo a complete transformation, yet Ye Fan had never drawn upon even a single fraction of it, allowing it to continue accumulating.
Within the cauldron, the power of faith had crystallized into a Divine Embryo. A figure identical to Ye Fan in every respect was being conceived within it!
In these years, the Heavenly Court had been flourishing more and more with each passing day. Everything had fallen into the proper order, and good news continued to arrive from time to time.
The monkey, brimming with joy, told everyone that the Battle-Victorious Buddha had finally cast away the last trace of lingering attachment in his heart, returned to the mortal world, and come together with the Shencan Princess.
In the end, the two of them had chosen to live in seclusion within a courtyard of the Heavenly Court — the Divine Ruins.
“Alas — time spares no one. My uncle is truly old now.” The monkey sighed softly. Even he himself was over two thousand years old. His uncle had already been several thousand years of age during the primordial era, and in this lifetime had been born two thousand years before the monkey as well. By now he truly showed every sign of old age.
Yet this was not what mattered most. What life ought to most cherish is a state of peace and happiness of heart.
The Battle-Victorious King had spent his entire life in battle. Even after entering the Buddhist path, it had been the same — he could not let go of everything from the primordial era, and had warred against himself within his own heart. After so many years, he had at last found complete enlightenment.
Now, not a single trace of a cultivator’s aura remained about him. He seemed like an ordinary old man, accompanying the Shencan Princess on leisurely walks every day, watching the sunrise together and watching the sunset together — growing old beside each other, a warmth that moved people deeply.
Ye Fan sighed softly. The old Battle-Victorious Buddha was truly very advanced in years. Perhaps the end of his life was drawing near — he did not have many more years to live. Ye Fan had once considered plucking immortal medicine and requesting the old monkey to take it, but the Battle-Victorious Buddha had gently declined.
“Is living a long time truly a blessing? Look at those Forbidden Zones — how pitiable. Every supreme being within them has lingered on for millions of years. Do they truly have no regrets?”
The Battle-Victorious Buddha smiled, accompanying the Shencan Princess as they walked away, playing with the group of young children in the Heavenly Court in the fading light of dusk. Both their faces were aglow with smiles that came from the very depths of their hearts.
Behind them followed a small Shencan — who had by now transformed into a little golden lion, barely a foot in length. It trailed behind them like a little tail, looking endearingly clumsy yet lively and adorably sweet.
The divine clan princess had once said that this little silkworm had appeared inexplicably in the ancestral grounds with origins of baffling strangeness. The transformation it had undergone was identical to that of their clan’s divine emperor in ancient times — a true forgetting of the past, where each transformation was a new birth.
Other Shencans could preserve their old memories through various means. Only this one was different. Those within the Shencan clan had at one point believed him to be yet another manifestation of their founding ancestor reborn.
“The years — how they wound the heart.” Pang Bo, Li Tian, and the others all sighed, for they could clearly sense that though the Old Madman and the Man-Devil still had abundant vital energy, they too were truly very advanced in age — also entering the twilight of their lives.
All in all, the Heavenly Court was relatively peaceful and warm.
Ji Haoyue, who had disappeared for many years, had returned. He had suffered a great defeat within the divine clan back then and had cried his anguish to the cosmos. He had accidentally fallen into a Heavenly Sovereign formation array, trapped inside for over a thousand years.
After Ji Chengdao advanced to quasi-emperor rank, he had spent all those long years searching — traversing the cosmos, hoping to reunite his parents. The call of bloodline had allowed him to sense where his father was trapped.
In the end, Ye Fan personally made his move, broke open the Heavenly Sovereign formation array, and rescued Ji Haoyue.
In truth, Ji Haoyue had been close to breaking out on his own as well. During his time inside, he had spent over a thousand years comprehending the Dao, studying in full the techniques of the “Tribulation-Crossing Heavenly Sovereign,” and his profound art had reached great completion.
“Ziyue…” When Ji Haoyue heard of everything that had transpired during these years, his tiger-like eyes brimmed with tears. “Elder brother failed to protect you!”
Ye Fan heard this and felt a throb of pain deep in his heart.
“Father, Auntie and little sister Xiao Zi ascended to immortality — you need not grieve.” Ji Chengdao supported his father by one arm as he spoke.
“I have let my attachments overcome me. Ascending to immortality — how many people’s dream is that? This is a good thing. Ye Fan… do not dwell on it. All these years, thank you for bringing Ziyue happiness.” Ji Haoyue wiped the tears from his tiger-like eyes clean and said these words to Ye Fan.
Ji Haoyue was a man of fierce pride. After emerging from his imprisonment, the first thing he did was seek out his wife. After his family was reunited for a short while, he went to the divine clan and fought a great battle against the divine sovereign.
In that battle, with Ye Fan’s covert intervention, the two sides ultimately ended in a draw and laid down their arms. All the grudges and grievances between them dissolved in the instant both sides fell. After all, that was his wife’s own brother — his child’s maternal uncle. Ji Haoyue did not wish to make things difficult for his family either. Thereafter, Ji Haoyue and his wife also retired from the world and entered the Heavenly Court.
Duan De, hearing the news, came hurrying over as if his backside were on fire, seeking to spar with Ji Haoyue over the Tribulation-Crossing technique. He simply inserted himself right into the midst of the family of three, spending every day in endless discussion. In the end Ji Haoyue saw through him — he didn’t truly want the techniques, he wanted hints and details about that ruined site, as if trying to unlock some old, buried memory.
“Alas — everyone has their own happiness. Even the tomb-raider is busy every day, bustling about in bliss. What should this Emperor plan as a direction for his own life?” The Great Black Dog said this while dead drunk.
“Indeed. Even that monkey-head seems to be smitten, I hear. Apparently the Six-Eared Macaque may be female. Now the Holy Emperor’s child spends every day sparring and doing battle with her — I think…” Long Ma said with a thick tongue, but was promptly smashed in the back of the head with a staff, raising a massive lump.
He immediately erupted in fury and bellowed, “Who dares ambush this Emperor?!”
But when he discovered the monkey standing behind him with his staff, glaring furiously, Long Ma very swiftly made peace with the situation — he immediately flopped face-down onto the table and fell asleep, snoring like thunder.
“Hmm, monkey, you’re here. Come, come, come — have a couple of drinks. Let me tell you about my life’s ambitions.” The Great Black Dog, bleary-eyed with drink, pulled the monkey down to sit beside him.
“What ambitions do you have? Just now you said you had no direction in life.”
“Who said I didn’t? In that one moment just now I thought of a great many things — listen as I speak of them slowly.” The Great Black Dog forcefully poured a cauldron of wine into his mouth, then slammed it heavily back onto the table — very unfortunately landing it right on the head of Long Ma who was playing dead. Long Ma grimaced and bared his teeth in pain, leaping up and cursing at the top of his lungs.
“Quiet — listen as this Emperor explains them to you slowly!”
The Great Black Dog’s eyes were a little bleary. And at this moment, a group of children also came running over to listen to him speak.
“I wish to pass this life in peace and quiet, in a beautiful living environment. For example, I’d plant an enlightenment tree in the back courtyard to sit under and cool off in summer’s heat. In the front courtyard I’d lay out a medicinal garden — plant a few stalks of True Dragon, Undying Phoenix, Nine Wonders, Qilin, Ten Thousand Year herbs — whatever comes to hand, and watch them bloom and fall, breathe in their faint fragrance, to cultivate one’s temperament. Oh, and of course it must be refined as well. I’d set up a bookshelf — on it there must be at least several dozen books, otherwise how would this Emperor display his erudition and literary cultivation? Like the secret texts of the Emperor Venerable, the Beginningless Great Emperor, the Ruthless Great Emperor, and such — these must be in the collection. The Nine Secrets, the Buddhist Six-Syllable True Mantra, and similar works — those can go on there casually. Of course, it would be best to also compile a complete collection of the Eighteen Forbidden Techniques — all the mightiest forbidden secret arts of the various Great Emperors, gathered together and unified. As for the household furnishings: use the Eternal Universe Furnace for cooking fire, the Void Mirror as a looking glass, the Undying Heavenly Blade for peeling radishes and cutting vegetables, the Ten Thousand Things Primordial Qi Cauldron for cooking rice, and the Western Emperor Pagoda as a nest or birdcage — for keeping birds. One must keep a demon emperor as a bird — the Golden Crow breed would be quite suitable. Hmm, I forgot — also dig a Spring of Fortune’s Eye. When thirsty, just ladle out a scoop…”
The Black Emperor rambled on torrentially, spittle flying everywhere. The monkey, Long Ma, and those who came rushing over afterward — Pang Bo, Li Tian, Yang Xi, and others — all looked at one another with blank expressions, their hearts itching with yearning.
And a whole group of little rascals had long since burst into shouts, scratching their ears and cheeks — the Black Emperor’s ideal life filled them with envy as well.
“There’s one most important thing you haven’t mentioned yet — at the very least you ought to leave behind a few pups, otherwise who will inherit your mantle?” Duan De walked in, grinning slyly as he spoke.
“Woof! Tomb-raider — you tell me: are you actually the Netherworld Emperor or not?!” The Great Black Dog lunged at him drunkenly, grabbing his collar, then shouted to the others, “Come — join me! Pin him down! Give him the mythological age’s ten greatest tortures! Make him confess!”
With a great whoosh, the monkey, Long Ma, Dongfang Ye, Li Tian, and others — and even a few small children — all lunged forward together, preparing to interrogate Duan De collectively.
“Limitless heavens, who is pulling off my Daoist robe?! Who is stealing my hairpin?!” Duan De cried out.
His entire body was covered in treasures. But with the monkey and the others pinning him down, the group of small children swarmed in and stripped him clean — even his shoes and socks and his trousers were pulled off, leaving his whole body nearly completely bare.
Ye Fan came alone to a courtyard — originally his home, the place where Ji Ziyue and Xiao Zi had lived. Yet now this place was very quiet. The joyful laughter of past days had faded. He could no longer hear their voices.
In the courtyard stood a phoenix tree. The lightning phoenix bird that Ji Ziyue had raised — Xiao Budian — lived within it. The young lady and her daughter had departed, yet it had remained alone, waiting and keeping watch.
“Elder Brother Ye, you’ve come.” Xiao Budian had long since grown up. Her cultivation was formidable — having consumed the divine demon flower and being of extraordinary bloodline herself, her advancement could only be described as terrifying. She was one of the powerful fighters that the Heavenly Court kept hidden in reserve. Yet she had always remained pure and simple, her nature never changing. She was optimistic and believed firmly that one day she would see Ziyue again.
Ye Fan nodded and greeted her.
In the courtyard also grew a plant — the divine demon flower. Its bloom had already faded. For it to bloom again would require fifty thousand years. Ji Ziyue had transplanted it here.
“Divine Son!” Xiao Que’er was here as well, tidying up the courtyard.
“Elder Sister Xiao Que’er comes often to tidy up,” Xiao Budian said.
Ye Fan sighed inwardly. He spoke with them for a little while, then took a rotten wooden box from inside the house and left.
Xiao Que’er watched his retreating figure as he walked further and further away, and for a very long time she said nothing more. Her heart was hollow and empty.
There were things Ye Fan wished to say, but in the end he could not bring himself to speak them.
Xiao Que’er watched the Divine Son, who remained unchanged in her heart, disappear from view. She murmured softly, “Divine Son, please don’t say anything. I just need to be able to see you each day — it makes me happy. I don’t want to leave this place.”
After all these years, Ye Fan had finally decided to deal with this rotten wooden box — for aside from an emperor surpassing Death, no one could move it!