A period of relative peace to come—seize it well. The old man Gai Jiuyou said it quietly, yet it filled Ye Fan with emotion and with a weight upon his heart.

Truly hard-won, this state of affairs had been fought for by several Sages together. How many difficulties and dangers had been involved—known only to those present? One slip and any of them could have fallen.

Most notably, the arrival of the two ancient imperial weapons had thrown the entire scheme into sudden chaos. Without someone of Gai Jiuyou’s caliber, who would have had the audacity to go and eliminate the wielders of the imperial weapons?

If the ancient imperial weapons had reawakened, even a Great Sage would have come away with grievances. Powerful as Gai Jiuyou was—had he not mastered the Script of the Soldier—this time would most likely have ended in disaster.

“Senior and the others, concerned for all under heaven—one can only admire it. Before, there was truly no need for me to rush in and act rashly.” Ye Fan said.

“No need to be so modest.” Gai Jiuyou truly did not look like a peerless figure of an era—sickly and wan, without a trace of the bearing of a supreme expert. He smiled and said: “We only refined and improved upon what was already there.”

Ye Fan said no more. The truly humble ones were these several Sages of the human race. They must certainly have had detailed plans in place long before—and though they did not step forward into the world, they had been looking far ahead.

Truly great and wise people always stand at the highest peaks, gazing down at roads that others cannot see.

Beside them, Xia Jiuyou was dressed in white, moving and beautiful—as dazzling as ever, enough to put celestial maidens to shame. She had changed from that willful, stubborn, even arrogant young girl of the past into a peerlessly beautiful woman of this generation.

Now that matters had come to this point, many things could be understood. In those years, Xia Jiuyou had proclaimed she would refine Ye Fan’s sage blood into precious elixirs—and it must have been intended to extend her teacher’s life. It was also a gesture of filial devotion.

The Ailing Elder’s life was exhausted. That young girl must have been casting about in every direction back then, trying to find a way—if only to let him live a few more years in this world.

When Ye Fan understood all of this, he felt that the former haughty and domineering young girl was not so insufferable after all. On the contrary, she seemed rather endearing, and he couldn’t help but smile.

“Dare to look at me one more time, and I will refine your eyes into divine lanterns.” The corner of Xia Jiuyou’s mouth curved slightly. Cold light flickered in her lively, large eyes.

Ye Fan: “…”

He had just been thinking that this young woman had changed, had become a good deal more likeable—yet she had immediately responded with a threat, leaving him speechless.

It was truly the case that one’s nature is hard to change. Though her appearance was peerlessly beautiful and had softened somewhat, she still harbored a proud heart within, her forcefulness unchanged.

With the support of the genius girl, the Ailing Elder walked forward, preparing to take part in the small-scale meeting open only to Sages and ancestor-kings—a meeting that concerned the peace and stability of the world for all the time to come.

Outside the Jade Pool, an ancient war chariot arrived—covered all over in axe marks and arrow holes, clearly having been baptized in countless bloody battles.

Nine primordial ancient beasts pulled the carriage, each one exhaling and inhaling vast torrents of divine light, every single one incomparably terrifying with an intimidating aura. Among them, one or two were already approaching the Sage’s boundary.

“It is him—the Unicorn Heavenly Ancestor-King has arrived, from the Fire Unicorn Cave’s primordial imperial clan!”

“That’s right—the Unicorn Heavenly King, in the same tier as the Nine Phoenix King. Both are terrifying existences with the potential to become Great Sages. In the primordial age, they swept across all domains, rarely meeting a worthy opponent.”

The Nine Phoenix King had once been praised by the supreme Battle Sage Emperor in a single sentence. The newcomer stood on a par with him—naturally, he too was like a blazing sun among the ancient clans.

Many ancient clans stepped forward to pay their respects, feeling that this Jade Pool grand gathering was truly unlike any before it. Both the Nine Phoenix King and the Unicorn Heavenly King had come, demonstrating how tremendously seriously the ancient clans regarded this occasion.

But what no one had anticipated was this: the moment the Unicorn Heavenly King stepped down from his war chariot, he fell into a daze—then walked forward quickly and bowed respectfully to an elderly man.

Many powerful figures of the ancient clans were left dazed. The Unicorn Heavenly King—what manner of existence was he? And yet he was paying his respects to an old man who looked quite ordinary.

“My respects to the Great Sage Huntuo!” At the Unicorn Heavenly King’s words, everyone was petrified—and then came a cascade of thud sounds as the ancient clans all dropped to their knees, hailing the Great Sage in unison.

He was a very ordinary-looking elder. To call him ancient rather than human would be more accurate. He looked more like a village elder from the countryside—even his clothing was such.

A Great Sage had truly come. He made this grand gathering all the more extraordinary. A figure of this stature had been moved—leaving everyone staggered.

One had to understand: how many Great Sages could a single ancient star produce? In an age when ancient emperors did not step into the world, this was an absolutely invincible existence—under heaven and earth, few could match him.

Great Sage Huntuo’s name had shaken the primordial age. He had been defeated only once in his entire life, pressed down by a single hand—but it was no disgrace, for that was an existence impossible to overcome: the Battle Sage Emperor.

Who would dare challenge an ancient emperor? Setting aside the outcome, the courage alone commanded admiration. At the time, it had sent shockwaves across the primordial age.

Although after the fact Great Sage Huntuo had mocked himself, saying he had been asking for death, having no sense of the height of heaven and depth of earth—this had not diminished his fame in the slightest. On the contrary, it had left all under heaven awestruck.

In those days, the Battle Sage Emperor had smiled and let the matter go without harming him, and had even remarked that he was not bad—which amounted to a form of praise, and was considered recognition by an ancient emperor.

No one had imagined a Great Sage who had been defeated only once in his life would truly come. Though rumors had circulated, at first people had not believed them.

Great Sage Huntuo bade the Unicorn Heavenly King rise, and the two walked together into the Jade Pool’s sacred land. A single glance brought him to Gai Jiuyou. He stopped in his tracks, visibly shaken.

He no longer had the Unicorn Heavenly King accompany him. He walked forward alone, keeping pace with the Ailing Elder, and said: “The human race… is truly awe-inspiring.”

“What is there to speak of as awe-inspiring? Ten thousand clans co-exist—may all under heaven be at peace.” Gai Jiuyou smiled and said.

“Indeed. The primordial emperors, and the human Great Emperors—all had great magnanimity, and all said similar things.” Great Sage Huntuo nodded, letting out a sigh, and said: “Those above Great Sage—from here on it would be best if they do not step forward into the world. Leave the world under heaven to the young.”

Gai Jiuyou was sickly and wan, yet also nodded, saying: “I see no need for even Sages to step out into the world—someone like me, with these old bones of mine, could still, if my heart was set on it, wipe out an imperial clan entirely. Even more so the ancestor-kings with their vigorous blood and breath—should they be provoked to fury, killing until bones number in the tens of millions, wiping out several clans—that is not beyond the realm of possibility. For the sake of peace under heaven, for this hard-won tranquility, let them all cultivate at their leisure.”

Great Sage Huntuo was taken aback, then smiled, saying: “One must still give the young people some opportunity, after all.”

The Ailing Elder narrowed his eyes and said: “Ancestor-kings and Sages have cultivated for many years, all of them clawed their way out of mountains of corpses and seas of bones. For them to engage in so-called life-and-death battles to achieve breakthroughs would be of little further use. Haven’t the most powerful bloodlines of the ancient emperors all reawakened in this generation? I look forward to it greatly. Aren’t the most dazzling prodigies of the ten thousand clans in the full vigor of their youth as well? They all need a stage. Let the world under heaven belong to them.”

“It is true—the bloodlines of the ancient emperors do carry a few promising lines. A single year for them equals a hundred years’ effort for others, with gifts rare in all the ages. The emperor’s children of the human race have not all been worn away in the dark age either, I would think. In such a great era, a road paved with blood and bone leading to ancient emperorhood—it is truly a harsh and cruel thing.” Great Sage Huntuo murmured to himself.

The Central Emperor watched as Gai Jiuyou walked on and disappeared, then fell into silence. Much later he let out a quiet sigh. Though they had been acquaintances, he did not step forward to meet him—just like that, they had passed by one another.

Everyone has their own different path. Life encounters are not the same, and so the trajectories of lives differ as well. As long as the day of life’s end has not come, there will always be different possibilities.

Each person is the sole protagonist of their own life, and at the same time, a supporting character and passing stranger in the lives of others—woven together like this into the human world.

Ye Fan sat quietly by the Jade Pool and waited for a long time, yet did not see the old woman who was of the same generation as the Old Madman appear. He let out a slow sigh. A Sage had ultimately fallen—dead at the place where the Northern Pole Immortal Light had been born. No one would ever know, and the final years of a Sage had been like this—a measure of desolation. There had not been a single person to see her off.

Withering—drawing to a close.

The wind rose. Falling petals drifted. Though they carried a soft fragrance, they were heartbreakingly beautiful—the end of an era.

The wind grew stronger, and petals of every kind fell and withered. Ye Fan sat there alone for a long time, feeling a chill in the air.

It was a gathering of ten thousand clans. In the end, only the Sages and ancestor-kings were involved in the discussions, unknown to outsiders. What arguments they were having was unclear; only occasionally did a few wisps of fury and suppressive pressure erupt, indicating that the scene inside was not calm.

“Little Ye, so you’re here—I’ve been looking for you for ages. Come on, let’s go drink.” Li Tian walked over, his pair of eyes measuring every beautiful woman in sight without pause, sniggering to himself.

“Little Ye, let’s go. Today we drink to our hearts’ content. The future is finally peaceful. And then—the hell with all of it—we go kill that Celestial Prince, go kill Yuangu that watermelon!” Li Heishui also walked over, hugging a crock of wine, belching away.

Ye Fan smiled and walked back with them. Ahead, Nan Yao, Qi Huoshui, the Central Emperor, Ji Ziyue, the Jade Pool Holy Woman, Ji Haoyue, the Monkey, Shencan Daoist, and a host of outstanding figures were drinking together in a merry commotion.

Duan De was busy playing the scheming advisor, offering absurd ideas to the Eastern Barbarian—egging him on to go challenge the Celestial Prince, then lure him over for everyone to gang up on and kill as revenge for his brother.

The moment he came back, Li Tian was all envy, jealousy, and resentment. He saw his own senior martial brother Yan Yixi in the distance—clearly in high spirits, raising a cup from afar with a woman of some primordial imperial clan.

“Damn it all, a genuine primordial divine beauty! A man like my senior martial brother deserves to be struck by heavenly lightning. With him here, I have no presence whatsoever.” Li Tian was indignant.

“She is Huo Qizi’s younger sister.” Yan Yixi said with nonchalance, dropping this piece of information. Clad in white robes, he was graceful and jade-like in bearing, otherworldly and transcendent.

“What?! She’s of ancient imperial bloodline—best not to provoke her!” Li Tian’s expression changed, then he said: “From now on, leave dealing with her to me.”

Everyone was speechless.

In the distance, a young woman in purple robes walked past. Duan De immediately nudged Ye Fan, saying: “The Holy Woman of the Purple Manor, the Innate Dao Womb. What a golden opportunity—knock her out with a single club and carry her off. In the future, you might cultivate a second Wushi.”

Everyone turned and rolled their eyes at him in unison.

Suddenly, outside the sacred land of the Jade Pool, a great commotion erupted—as lively as a scene of chickens fluttering and dogs leaping about. Someone was cursing. Faintly, a dog’s barking could be heard.

In that moment, Ye Fan shot to his feet, his expression one of indescribable excitement, saying: “That’s… the Black Emperor!”

“How is that possible? I watched it die with my own eyes back then—it was killed for our sake.” Li Heishui’s mood immediately sank.

“It is him—there is no mistake!” Ye Fan charged outside. Seeing this, the others all stood up and followed.

Outside the Jade Pool, a great black dog poked out its red tongue, built like a bull—strong and robust—its whole body of black fur glossy as silk and gleaming.

“Black Emperor!” Ye Fan was overwhelmed with excitement. It truly was him.

“You… are still alive!” Li Heishui was overcome as well, rushing forward.

Everyone stared in disbelief. This dog had truly not died. It was alive and kicking—appearing again. Its life was truly hard.

“Why is it that every time you appear, it’s always like chickens fluttering and dogs leaping?” Someone laughed from behind, greatly moved.

“Who is this Emperor? The focus of ten thousand gazes—the wind stirs for me, heaven and earth resound for me. Only with my presence is there brilliance!” The great black dog held its head high in arrogance, speaking without shame, its cheek as thick as could be.

BOOM!

From within the Jade Pool, a wisp of a Sage’s aura erupted again, and the sounds of argument carried out. Many people heard the voices of the ancestor-kings at their meeting.

“Absolutely not—absolutely impossible. Why should Sage-level figures be forbidden from acting?”

“On what basis?!”

The people were shaken. Clearly, the meeting had reached a stalemate.

The Black Emperor, having just arrived at the Jade Pool and hearing these shouts, immediately took on a solemn and dignified bearing, its whole body glowing.

“This Emperor has something important to do.” With that, it spat out a golden sheet of paper blazing with ten thousand rays of light, from which erupted an incomparable aura of a Great Emperor.

“What is that?” Ye Fan asked in astonishment.

“The Wushi Great Emperor’s Divine Decree!” The Black Emperor declared solemnly.

“What—this is truly a—”

“That’s right—it truly is!” The Black Emperor nodded earnestly.