A master of comedy!

At the end of time, at the origin of time.

Zhou Sheng finally stopped, a hint of confusion in his eyes.

He had already traversed the river and glimpsed all its secrets, but he was still a hair's breadth away from fully comprehending the Great Dao.

His epiphany was still incomplete.

Without finding that final piece of the puzzle, one will never be able to successfully overcome the tribulation.

"Hahaha, a mortal body, yet you dare to try and control the Great Dao of Time?"

"It seems you are not destined for enlightenment. Even if we do not interfere, you are not qualified!"

"Haha, you've lost! In the end, we've won this war that has lasted for a thousand years!"

Countless wild laughs rang out, and the demons even stopped their attack, mocking Zhou Sheng with a tone full of disdain and sarcasm.

They mocked his overestimation of his abilities.

Zhou Sheng silenced the demons with just one sentence.

"If I am truly unable to attain enlightenment, then why don't you leave instead of using your precious power on me?"

The demons were speechless.

Having said that, he walked to the end of the long river and saw countless shadows of demons beneath the water. They had no specific appearance, but were the most terrifying manifestations of the human heart.

In other words, you will see what you fear most.

Underwater, it seemed to be an abyss imprisoning countless demons and gods, hiding terrible dangers. Just a glance from the shore was enough to send Zhou Sheng's Dao heart into a frantic state of alarm.

But he took a deep breath, closed his eyes, and jumped in.

This is the last hexagram of the Luoshu.

"Xi Kan, You Fu, Wei Xin Heng, Xing You Shang."

To die and then to live.

Zhou Sheng jumped into the end of the long river, but the next moment, he did not feel the erosion of time or the attack of those demon gods. Instead, he came to a world where the sea of ​​fire surged and the earth's crust was like mud.

This is what this world looked like when it was first created.

Not to mention life, even earth, water, wind, and fire were not fully born, and even those demons and gods did not exist.

Zhou Sheng stared blankly at all of this, like a chaotic ghost.

From the birth of earth, water, wind, and fire, to the first drop of water falling, and then to the gestation of life...

He seemed to have been watching for countless millennia, until a thunderclap exploded.

……

Inside the cave, Monkey King had just picked up a fresh peach and hadn't even started eating it when Zhou Sheng on the lotus platform suddenly opened his eyes.

In an instant, an extremely dangerous feeling arose in Monkey King's heart, and the golden cudgel in his ears was buzzing and vibrating.

It was as if his proud, indestructible body could turn into a handful of dust at any moment under that terrifying gaze.

"Breakthrough?"

"Breakthrough."

Zhou Sheng nodded, then asked, "How long did it take me?"

Monkey King pointed to the teeth marks on the peach and exclaimed in surprise, "I haven't even started eating it yet, and you've already broken through! That's incredibly fast..."

Zhou Sheng smiled slightly, as if he understood something, and said, "A moment is also eternity. Time itself has no meaning. Thousands of years can be condensed into a single instant."

Monkey King was completely baffled. He couldn't understand why his second brother, who was just trying to break through a cultivation level, liked to spout such rambling and nonsensical nonsense.

It's almost as good as the master chanting scriptures.

However, as if he had thought of something, his spirits lifted, and he hurriedly asked, "Does that mean that those demons will no longer be able to be resurrected and reborn?"

Zhou Sheng shook his head.

Monkey King was so anxious that he scratched his head and said, "What should we do? They didn't tell me about this situation."

"Haha, what I mean is, Brother Monkey, don't be in a hurry, wait for me a moment."

After saying this, Zhou Sheng slowly reached out his hand, his eyes seemingly reflecting a vast Milky Way, and a mighty river of time appeared, falling from the heavens and finally entering his palm.

With a gentle squeeze, a jade-like mark appears on the palm.

This grasp completely reclaimed the power over the Great Way of Time, placing it in one person's hands from then on.

And those demons and gods will no longer be able to draw upon the power of this Great Dao.

In the darkness, Zhou Sheng saw countless familiar figures nodding to him in a distant place.

There was a third prince who held a fire-tipped spear and rode on a wind-fire wheel.

A valiant general with a third eye on his forehead is stroking a black dog.

There was an old general carrying the Zhenwu Sword, with disheveled hair and dressed in black, whose appearance vaguely resembled Zhang Sanfeng.

There was a swordsman with a three-foot sword in a scabbard on his back, exuding heroic spirit.

There was also an old man riding a blue ox, a young man with a sword, and a middle-aged man holding a jade ruyi. From a distance, they looked like a three-flowered branch.

……

The battle flag is raised.

The Thunder God beats the drum, and the Dragon King stirs up the wind.

Those figures, whether weary or wounded, all burst forth with fierce fighting spirit at this moment, their eyes shining brightly.

"kill!!!"

As the indomitable battle cry rang out, countless figures transformed into a torrent and rushed towards those demons and gods.

The thirty-six generals of the Thunder Department beat the "Kui Niu Shaking the Heavens Drum" together. The sound of the drum is a personification of a giant thunder beast. With each roar, it spews out innate thunderbolts that penetrate into the demon god and detonate in a series of explosions.

The five righteous gods of the Fire Department jointly raised the "Ten Thousand Crows Pot," from which flew a flock of flaming crows transformed from the Golden Crow Fire Essence, turning the battlefield into a sea of ​​fire.

The Plague God, the Great Emperor of Haotian, unfurled the "Plague Banner," its surface painted with images of plague demons representing the twenty-four solar terms. This caused the demon god's flesh to rot and become afflicted with countless diseases, creating a scene even more bizarre than the demon god himself.

The stars of the Dipper arrayed in a killing formation, with 108 ominous stars projected into a winch that could grind anything. Furthermore, the Sun Emperor's golden chariot, powerful and domineering, crushed demons with its pure yang fire rails.

Five hundred Arhats chanted the "Demon-Breaking Mantra" in unison, Maitreya Buddha opened his human seed bag, the Seven Medicine Buddhas gathered the "Pure Lapis Lazuli Fire," and Shakyamuni Buddha unfolded his Buddha-land in the palm of his hand with a snap of his fingers...

This is an unprecedented battle.

Looking at their retreating figures, Zhou Sheng felt fortunate to be a link in turning the tide of the battle.

This great battle will certainly not end immediately, but from today onwards, the counter-offensive has begun in earnest, and the balance of power has shifted.

"How could such a great battle be complete without me, Old Sun?"

"Damn it, get me back to my place right now!"

The monkey pulled out its golden cudgel, its eyes gleaming, already impatient.

……

Ten years later.

The Imperial Palace in Chang'an, the capital of the Hua Kingdom.

"Your Majesty, this year in the thirteen prefectures along the southeast coast, a young dragon has been causing storms and torrential rains, destroying crops. The Heavenly and Human Affairs Bureau originally intended to send people to capture it, but they have calculated that it is the son of the Dragon King of the North Sea. Fearing that this would displease the Dragon King, they ask if you still wish to arrest it?"

In the palace, a eunuch, holding a memorial, asked cautiously.

Sitting on the dragon throne is the current ruler of the world, the current emperor, the supreme Daoist emperor who has created a golden age for humans and gods, Zhou Danshan.

That great battle ended completely three years ago.

Then came the era of humans and gods living together. The gods gradually returned, and he, who originally wanted to join the ranks of immortals, was instead elected by the gods and Buddhas as the current human emperor, ruling over the human world.

There was no other way; the fate of the human world was of great importance, concerning the continuation of incense offerings. Both Buddhism and Taoism wanted it, but only Zhou Sheng could satisfy both sides.

To this, Zhou Sheng could only say—

You have really caused me great suffering!

However, after the gods returned, some friction was inevitable. For example, the son of the North Sea Dragon King was actually fighting with a human and did not know how to control himself.

"Arrest them, whether they are dragons or worms. As long as they are in the human world, they must abide by the laws of my Great Hua. If the Dragon King of the North Sea is dissatisfied, let him come to me in person."

"Here!"

The eunuch put away the memorial and then took out another one.

"Your Majesty, this is..."

Zhou Sheng felt overwhelmed and quickly waved his hand, saying, "Let Prime Minister Yao and Prime Minister Bao discuss this together. Tell them to stop bothering me."

After taking control of the Great Dao of Time, he immediately rescued Bao Ying.

This guy is full of energy every day. He's over sixty years old, but he still works like a young man, staying up all night every day.

Just then, a clear, crisp sound rang out.

"One two one, one two one..."

Hongxian, carrying a dragon-spitting fire spear, led a boy and a girl into the temple gate, where he had the two children march in step and then salute.

"Hello, boss!" they shouted loudly at the red line, their voices clear and resonant.

Hongxian nodded in satisfaction, then pointed at Zhou Sheng.

The two children's eyes lit up, and they shouted again, "Big Boss!"

Zhou Sheng's face immediately darkened. He walked down and knocked on one of the men's hands, saying, "Call me 'Father'!"

"Hehe, Dad, I broke Mom's favorite glass mirror. Can you use the Great Path of Time to restore it for me?"

The one speaking was a boy. After Yang Ying awakened her memories of her past life, Zhou Sheng married her and held a grand wedding. He also married both her and Jinse.

To his surprise, Yao Tai Feng showed more affection than jealousy towards Jinse, saying, "You've worked hard all these years."

Instead of a dramatic confrontation, a display of sisterly affection unfolded, leaving Zhou Sheng completely out of the picture.

The following year, Yao Tai Feng became pregnant.

Of course, the reason Zhou Sheng was able to conceive so quickly was because he got a secret recipe from the Old Man Under the Moon.

Jinse gave birth to a daughter, named Zhou Yao, while Yaotai Feng gave birth to a son, named Zhou Qian.

This kid is young, but he's incredibly mischievous. He breaks a bowl one day and a bottle the next. Zhou Sheng spends almost all of his time repairing these broken things.

"Next time you break something, I'll beat your butt to a pulp too, then use the Great Road of Time to fix it up, and then I'll keep beating you!"

Upon hearing this, Zhou Qian trembled and dared not utter a sound.

"What happened to you?"

Zhou Yao pouted and said with a wronged expression, "Daddy, I... I learned how to make candied fruit from Master Hongxian. I wanted to bring some for you to try. You work so hard every day..."

Her pitiful, tearful appearance instantly melted Zhou Sheng's heart. He reached out and hugged the little girl, gently comforting her.

Zhou Qian rolled his eyes and silently imitated Zhou Yao's speech with a disdainful look.

Zhou Sheng was about to give the boy another tap when he suddenly froze.

The next moment, he froze, his primordial spirit leaving his body and heading to the heavens.

Above the clouds, Venus, Li Changgeng, holding a whisk, smiled and bowed to Zhou Sheng.

"This humble immortal pays respects to the Human Emperor!"

Zhou Sheng's eyes flashed, and he asked, "Is the road open?"

"It's connected."

When can we go?

"Now is fine."

Li Changgeng took out a token and said, "This is a magic array jointly created by Doumu Yuanjun and the Twenty-Eight Constellations. It can be activated by injecting magic power..."

Before he finished speaking, Zhou Sheng had already infused his magic power into the formation. The next moment, the power of the stars surged forth and transformed into a magic array.

His primordial spirit vanished instantly.

He didn't know how much time had passed, but when he came to his senses again, he found himself in a familiar place.

The area is bustling with traffic, towering buildings, and people hurrying by, each with a mobile phone in their hand.

It is Earth.

Zhou Sheng looked at all this with nostalgia, then transformed into a rainbow of light and went to Jiuhua Mountain to place the relics of Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva into the Moon Body Palace.

Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva's last words were, "Go home."

He knew that this "home" referred to the Earth.

After the relic fell, the Moon Palace remained unchanged. On Earth, where spiritual energy was depleted, it was difficult to manifest any miracles.

But Zhou Sheng could sense that the energy of the entire mountain had changed.

The wind blows and the trees sway.

He seemed to hear that gentle, calm voice again, softly saying thank you.

Zhou Sheng flew back to the home he remembered.

The home was still warm and cozy, with someone exactly like him taking care of his parents, and even doing it better than him.

Zhou Sheng watched them quietly, enjoying their harmonious time together.

It wasn't until late at night that "Zhou Sheng" quietly left and came to him.

Who exactly are you?

Zhou Sheng smiled slightly, and then transformed into a red-faced old man, exuding an aura of vicissitudes.

“You can call me… Nuo Gong.”

Zhou Sheng seemed to be deep in thought.

Yinxi originated from shamanism, and this Nuogong is the revered deity worshipped by the shamanism lineage. Legend has it that he often transforms into an ordinary old man and silently listens to the opera among the crowd.

"When the gods and Buddhas left, why did you stay?"

Upon hearing this question, Nuo Gong's eyes revealed a touch of vicissitude: "Because the roots of opera are here. I'm old and can't bear to part with those old tunes."

"The tortoise shell and Luoshu diagrams were also sold to me by you, weren't they?"

"Not bad, I asked for a million, and you actually bargained down to a hundred..."

Recalling that scene, Nuo Gong smiled and shook his head with amusement.

Why would you sell it to me?

"Because you're really buying it, everyone else says it's fake, and they wouldn't even take it if I offered fifty."

Zhou Sheng: "..."

"Haha, I was just kidding. Actually, it's because..."

Nuo Gong stopped smiling and said seriously, "You have a good talent for opera. You were born to learn opera and go to work... what a pity."

Zhou Sheng was stunned for a moment, then laughed.

"Master Nuo, may I learn opera from you?"

"Of course, I've been waiting for you."

That night, the old man and the young man began practicing, singing, and teaching opera.

Nuo Gong taught very diligently, and Zhou Sheng learned very diligently.

Because he had already seen that Nuo Gong's essence was damaged in this world where spiritual energy was depleted, and coupled with the decline of opera, his days were numbered.

He has stayed here, hoping to pass on the knowledge.

Zhou Sheng was the successor he had been waiting for.

That night, the sounds of opera never ceased, just like the ceaseless roar of the waves that has lasted for thousands of years.

……

"Father! Father!"

Amidst the innocent cries of his children, Zhou Sheng slowly opened his eyes.

He has returned from Earth.

"Father, please tell me a story!"

Zhou Yao said coquettishly, while Zhou Qian's eyes lit up. They loved listening to their father tell stories.

Zhou Sheng thought for a moment, smiled slightly, and sat down on the ground.

"Okay, then tell me a story related to the play."

"play?"

"Yes, don't let your father's current status as the emperor fool you. In the beginning, I studied opera, but not ordinary opera, but... yin opera."

What is "yinxi"?

"Hehe, you'll find out as you keep listening."

"That night, I went to help someone break up a stage..."

Hongxian, standing to the side, ate candied fruit, eagerly anticipating her own appearance in the story.

In the distance, Yu Zhensheng and Yu Tianheng, old friends and rivals, were still arguing heatedly over a particular opera style and a particular gesture.

In the inner palace, Yao Tai Feng put on the costume she wore when she performed in the opera years ago, preparing to apply makeup and sing "Farewell My Concubine" with Zhou Sheng again that night, but suddenly discovered that the glass mirror she used for makeup was gone.

The music was melodious. After Jinse finished playing a piece, she took out the sheet music that Zhou Sheng had specially written for her and played it while softly singing along.

"The audience walked by, and the familiar faces were nowhere to be seen."

"On stage, someone is singing a heartbreaking farewell song..."

"The curtain rises, the curtain falls, who is the guest?"

……

(The End) (End of Chapter)