Living in the deep palace

Wu's tone was so calm, as if he were just talking about a trivial matter.

After saying that, he looked at Su Chen with his ancient eyes and slowly said, "You killed Kui, didn't you?"

Although it was a question, his tone was full of certainty.

Su Chen did not deny it and nodded.

“It seems…” A bitter yet relieved smile appeared on Wu’s face, “You are very strong. I… cannot escape this calamity…”

"I sensed my impending demise when I was just revived before I died."

"after all."

"Who made me a withering beast—Wu?"

“I’ve done countless calculations, and I’ve found that there’s no way to escape this calamity. Whether I submit to the Ten Ancient Venerables, the Ten Heavenly Venerables, or seek help from other forbidden beasts, the result is the same…”

"Ugh."

"That's true, everyone dies eventually, and no one can escape it."

He neither begged for mercy nor showed anger; he simply accepted his fate calmly. As the embodiment of "decay," he understood the inevitability of "end" better than anyone else.

However, his gaze slowly shifted to the distance, to the prosperous world he had created and protected for countless years.

For the first time, his ancient eyes revealed an emotion called "reluctance" and "worry".

"I... am destined to wither away."

"However, it's a pity for the beings of this realm that I created from my origin..."

"They are innocent. They are my only solace in eternal silence."

"They are my only proof... against my own destiny."

He turned back and looked at Su Chen with an almost pleading gaze. His eyes were filled with compassionate pity.

"After this battle, would it be possible... to move the creatures here into your inner universe..."

“I can sense that your Dao encompasses all things and is far more suitable for them to thrive than my desolate world. I ask for nothing more than... leave a way for my children to live.”

After he finished speaking, he slowly stood up, and his hunched body appeared incredibly majestic at that moment.

He bowed deeply to Su Chen.

A natural-born fourth-realm being, one of the oldest beings in the universe, bowed his noble head to his "executioner" for the sake of the creatures he created.

Su Chen looked at him quietly and remained silent for a long time.

Finally, he nodded slowly.

"it is good."

A single word, yet it carries the weight of an immense promise.

Upon hearing this word, a genuine, heartfelt smile of relief appeared on Wu's wrinkled face.

"Thank you."

He straightened up, and the peaceful, aged aura that had emanated from him vanished in that instant.

Instead, a terrifying divine power, originating from "decay," soared into the sky, annihilating all things!
"To show my respect, and to protect my last shred of dignity."

"In this battle, I will... go all out!"

boom--! ! !
The ground beneath his feet instantly turned to ashes, and the rushing river dried up in an instant! The thousand-foot-tall weeping willows behind him also turned into withered ashes in a moment!
The pastoral scene before me has faded and crumbled like a painting.

Su Chen and "Wu" disappeared from their original positions at the same time, entering an independent dimensional space opened up by "Wu's" original Dao.

……

……

This is a gray, lifeless world.

The sky was leaden gray, with a waning sun, exuding an aura of decay, hanging listlessly.

The earth was scorched gray, barren of vegetation, and filled with weathered rocks and collapsed ruins.

The air was thick with the aura of "end times". Any living being here would have its life force irreversibly stripped away, eventually turning into a skeleton.

"Wu" floats quietly in the sky above this world.

His body was no longer that of an old man, but had transformed into a towering tree, tens of thousands of feet tall, made entirely of decaying gray wood... the World Tree!
This is his true form!

"The Terrifying Domain!"

The loud "whoosh" echoed throughout the entire space.

As his words fell, this deathly silent world seemed to come alive!
On the earth, countless gray vines formed from the law of "annihilation" burst forth from the ground like awakened giant pythons, spreading out and wrapping around Su Chen!

In the sky, the setting sun suddenly burst forth with gray light! That light carried no warmth, yet contained a terrifying power that could decay time and wither all things, descending upon Su Chen!

This is the Dao of "Wu," the domain he has cultivated for countless eons! Here, he is the master of decay and annihilation!

Any enemy who steps into this place will be assimilated into dust by his great path!
Despite the overwhelming suppression of this domain, which would have driven even ordinary fourth-realm cultivators to despair, Su Chen remained calm.

He simply gazed quietly at the towering, withered World Tree and slowly shook his head.

"Your 'decay' is just a facade."

“But my ‘end’ is the essence.”

As soon as he finished speaking, he slowly raised his right hand and made a sword-finger gesture.

A pure, unyielding blackness, impossible to conceal by any light, quietly emerged at his fingertips.

[Heaven-Slaying Sword]!
He neither cut down the overwhelming vines nor tried to block the decaying light that descended from the sky.

His goal, from beginning to end, has always been the same.

That is the true form of "芜"!

He made a light stroke on the huge, withered World Tree.

laugh--!
There was no earth-shattering sound, no cataclysmic fluctuation.

Only a faint, jet-black sword mark appeared out of thin air within the "Wu" domain.

The moment this sword mark appeared, all the laws of the entire "Withering Domain" suddenly froze!
The frantically attacking gray vines stopped in mid-air.

That decaying light that illuminated heaven and earth also solidified in the sky.

Time, space, laws, energy... everything loses its meaning before this sword strike.

Because this sword strikes not at matter, but at the "concept"!
It severed the "connection" between "barrenness" and its own great path!
"What's this……"

For the first time, emotions called "bewilderment" and "shock" emerged from the grand will of "Wu"!

He could clearly feel that his innate, all-powerful "withering" essence had become incredibly unfamiliar at this moment, as if... it no longer belonged to him!
After severing the "connection," the pitch-black sword mark imprinted itself onto his colossal body with unstoppable force.

There was no explosion, no breakage.

The indestructible body of the World Tree, made of the oldest wood in the universe, silently... "vanished" from the spot where the sword mark touched it.

It was as if an invisible eraser was slowly erasing reality from the canvas of life.

"So... this is the real... 'end'..."

"really."

"You are the strongest in this world, capable of extinguishing even the hope of revival for a withering beast like me..."

Just before his complete dissipation, the will of "Wu" let out a sigh filled with understanding and relief. His soul, bound by the fate of "withering" for countless eons, finally found its ultimate... liberation under this sword.

Boom.

With the complete demise of "Wu", this gray "withered realm" also collapsed and dissipated.

Su Chen's figure reappeared on the banks of that silent river.

A primordial power, even purer and more imbued with the essence of the Dao than that of "Kui," slowly flowed into his body.

At this moment, his late-stage Taiyi Golden Immortal realm was completely consolidated, and even... it showed a slight improvement.

only.

This is still a long way from reaching the perfect state of Taiyi Golden Immortal.

He would probably need to devour about ten more forbidden beasts of the fourth realm before he could hope to break through.

Or perhaps it is five Heavenly Venerables, or three Ancient Venerables.

"Ugh."

“There’s still a long way to go.”

"I wonder when I will be able to cultivate to the Taiyi Perfection and be able to plunder and kill people in the fourth realm at will."

"Only by being able to plunder and kill those at the fourth level can I hope to return to the Star Sea of ​​the future and fight against those so-called outsiders—the Heavenly Calamity!"

Su Chen closed his eyes.

Followed by.

He quietly contemplated for a moment, then turned around and looked at the martial arts world that had lost its source of "vital energy" and was now in a state of confusion and chaos.

It's time to fulfill my promise.

He took a step forward, and his figure appeared in the sky above the capital of that dynasty.

He did not conceal his presence; the transcendent aura of a Taiyi Golden Immortal, like gentle sunlight, shone upon the entire earth.

At this moment, all living beings in this small world, whether they were high-ranking emperors, chivalrous knights who sought revenge, or farmers working in the fields, felt something and raised their heads to look at the sky.

They saw a "divine being" that defied description and radiated endless brilliance.

"You creators of this world have already returned to silence."

Su Chen's gentle yet authoritative voice resonated in the hearts of every living being.

"I have been entrusted to lead you to a... new world."

As he finished speaking, he slowly opened his palm.

A portal of light, radiating boundless vitality and profound mystery, leading to the universe within him, slowly opened in his palm.

The whole world fell into a brief silence.

Then, an unprecedented uproar and shock erupted.

But in the end, guided by that irresistible yet benevolent divine power, the beings of this world made their choice.

The first was the emperor of that dynasty, who led his civil and military officials to kneel down and choose to submit and relocate.

Next came those unruly martial arts sects.

Ultimately, it is the millions upon millions of ordinary living beings.

Under Su Chen's guidance, a dynasty, a martial arts world, and a complete martial arts civilization ascended to the heavens in an orderly fashion, migrating into his ever-expanding and perfecting...inner universe.

When the last wisp of human smoke disappeared into the gate of light, this azure star was completely transformed into a lifeless, desolate planet, devoid of any trace of life.

Su Chen withdrew his supernatural powers and quietly hovered above the planet, taking one last look at this place that held the final tenderness of a departed soul.

He kept his promise.

But his hunting journey is far from over.

He closed his eyes again, sensing the remaining eight "beacons" from the depths of Chen Sheng's memories.

Pick the soft persimmons.

no doubt.

The Ten Ancient Venerables are the most powerful.

Although the Ten Celestial Venerables are relatively weaker, they are still genuine members of the Fourth Realm.

In contrast, these so-called Ten Forbidden Beasts, although they are fourth-realm beings even older than the Ten Ancient Venerables, have only recently been revived and are not strong in combat.

in this way.

They are the perfect targets for hunting.

……

……

Meanwhile, Su Chen was unaware of the terrifying upheavals his two consecutive "hunts" had unleashed across the fourteen star seas.

East Sea, Crystal Dragon Palace.

This magnificent palace, suspended deep in the universe and carved from a single piece of the "Heart of the World," is the residence of the Dragon Emperor of the East Sea, the head of the Ten Ancient Deities.

Inside the "Hall of Myriad Phenomena" at the deepest part of the palace, the Dragon Emperor of the East Sea sat cross-legged on a pitch-black throne forged from the remnants of countless stars.

His eyes were closed, and nine golden dragons formed from pure causal laws surrounded him. With each breath, the laws of the entire East Sea Star Region rose and fell with them.

However, just now, his calm and undisturbed state of mind was suddenly shattered by two unexpected and violent tremors!

That was not a physical vibration, but a collapse originating from the most fundamental "foundation" level of the universe!
He could clearly "feel" that two of the ten oldest and most fundamental "pillars" that constituted this universe had been forcibly erased by an incomprehensible and tyrannical force in a very short time!

It is not death, not annihilation, but a complete and utter "disappearance" at the conceptual level!
"It's the aura of 'Kui' and 'Wu'..."

The Dragon Emperor of the East Sea suddenly opened his majestic dragon eyes, which reflected the birth and death of the universe, and they were filled with boundless horror and solemnity.

Having personally participated in the ancient "War Against Heaven" and fought against the ten forbidden ancient beings, he knew better than anyone how difficult it was to kill those "Children of the Dao".

They are the origin of this universe, born from this world. Theoretically, as long as this world does not perish, they will be eternal and immortal.

Back then, even when the twelve of them joined forces, they could only defeat him and, with the help of the remaining will of Chen Sheng, shatter the seal on his original mark.

It is virtually impossible to truly "eradicate" them.

But now, they are falling one after another!
"who is it?!"

"Which Celestial Venerable found their sealing location? No... no, even if the Ten Celestial Venerables joined forces, they couldn't have wiped them out so cleanly in such a short time!"

A name that weighed heavily on his heart, yet seemed to be on the tip of his tongue, surfaced in his mind.

Time God!
"Guards!" the Dragon Emperor of the East Sea roared.

"Your Majesty!" A dragon general clad in golden armor appeared instantly below the throne and knelt on one knee.

"By my decree, activate the 'Myriad Manifestations Causal Dragon Pearl'! I wish to personally observe the changes in the origin of the universe!"

"...Yes!" The dragon general trembled, a hint of horror flashing in his eyes, but he still respectfully accepted the order and left.

The Myriad Manifestations Cause and Effect Dragon Pearl is the supreme treasure of the East Sea Dragon Clan. It is an innate spiritual treasure that accompanied the birth of the first ancestral dragon at the very beginning of the dragon clan's existence.

This treasure is neither good at attacking nor at defending; it has only one use—observation!
Observe the myriad phenomena of the universe, and comprehend the vast flow of cause and effect! (End of Chapter)