Desolate Era

by RWX

  “Haha, let’s not get depressed.” Prince Greatjoy was in a fine mood. “In the end, lucky encounters and karmic blessings might be useful, but cultivation is ultimately up to yourself and your own efforts! They are in the inner reaches while we are in the outer reaches, but we won’t necessarily fall behind them!”

  “Right. In fact, we might actually overtake them.” Firesurge nodded as well.

  However, they all knew that they were just pumping themselves up and encouraging themselves. They all understood that the inner reaches had far more opportunities hidden within them than the outer reaches did, and both Solewind and Darknorth were just as talented as the three of them. There was no way they wouldn’t improve even further!

  ……

  Prince Greatjoy’s retainer, ‘World Goddess Skywolf’, also gave the primessence chains a try. In the end, she was forced to come to a halt at around five hundred kilometers.

  Flamefairy Su Youji actually managed to make it close to the six hundred kilometer mark. Clearly, she was quite skilled at defending against illusions, as that was her own path as well. Alas, in the end she simply hadn’t reached a high enough level of skill in this Dao.

  Solewind’s retainer, Chaos Immortal Swallowback, actually managed to make it all the way to the nine hundred and ten kilometer mark! This badly shocked Ning and all the other spectators. Who would’ve thought that he would be able to make it this far?! This was almost as far as Prince Greatjoy himself had made it, and was a far stronger performance than Waterlord Firesurge’s!

  Of course, in an actual battle he was far from being a match for Prince Greatjoy, Firesurge, or Skyfire. In the field of resisting illusions, however, he was clearly a very strong contender.

  “Solewind and Darknorth, the two of you can stay in the inner reaches. We’ll wander the outer reaches. Don’t end up weaker than us by the next time we meet!” Prince Greatjoy laughed from afar, his voice rippling through space and making it to the other side of the chains.

  “We’ll part ways here. The two of you better not disappoint me!” A stubborn, intense light gleamed in Firesurge’s eyes.

  As for Su Youji, she stared at Ji Ning from afar.

  Chaos Immortal Swallowback did the same towards his own master, Heartlord Solewind.

  The two parties separated, heading off in different directions.

  Prince Greatjoy and the others depart, beginning their journey through the various mysterious regions of the outer reaches. There, they would search for their own karmic blessings and opportunities. As for Ning and Solewind, they began their true journey into the Prime Reaches.

  “Incredible.”

  “Crazy strong.”

  “Where the hell did these World-level cultivators come from?” The twelve spectators and Daolord Owlbath were all utterly amazed. They had been wandering the outer reaches for many years now, and dreamed of being able to make it past the primessence chains. They knew exactly how hard it was for one to be able to actually overcome the chains… but just now, two of the eight World-level cultivators in that group, the ones named ‘Solewind’ and ‘Darknorth’, had actually succeeded. Two others had made it past the nine hundred kilometer mark!

  “Absolutely amazing.”

  “Given how extraordinarily strong their hearts and souls are, they must be under the tutelage of a truly extraordinary power.”

  “No ordinary school could possibly hand over eight Archaeus medallions at once.” They couldn’t help but continue to chatter in amazement, having firmly engraved the names and faces of Ning and the others in their minds.

  ……

  Ning and Solewind gave the primessence chains a final glance. Prince Greatjoy and the others had already flown away.

  “Let’s go,” Solewind said.” “Once we leave the Prime Reaches, we’ll meet with them again.”

  “Right.” Ning nodded. He had left a message-talisman with Su Youji. Once they left the inner reaches, he would be able to locate her with ease, thanks to his connection to that talisman. Most likely, Solewind had left behind something similar with his own retainer, Chaos Immortal Swallowback.

  The world of the inner reaches was aw orld that was roughly a billion kilometers in size. This wasn’t exactly small, but for cultivators of their power it wasn’t exactly large either.

  This place was filled with an aura of utterly immense power. All flight was impossible here, and it was impossible for one to scan the area using godsense or chaosense, much less engage in spatial teleportation! The only option was to rely on one’s two feet. Thankfully, the two of them were able to walk quite quickly, moving far faster than the limits of the Heavenly Daos.

  “This place is an ancient battlefield.” As Ning and Solewind advanced through this world, they moved towards the peak of a mountain, then came to a halt and surveyed the entirety of the inner reaches.

  As far as the eye could see, the earth was littered with trenches, gouges, canyons, crater, and rubble. This was a ruined, destroyed world. Look at that terrifying gorge over there, filled with an utterly terrifying sword-intent that was so strong that Ning could hardly breathe. The strength and intensity of that sword-intent was so great that it was definitely the most powerful sword-intent Ning had ever encountered.

  Even the most powerful sword-strike of Emperor Mirrorsnow was significantly weaker compared to the sword-intent radiating from that great gorge.

  Awe-inspiring sword-intent.

  Bounding saber-intent.

  Billowing plumes of watery light.

  Chaotic fields of spacetime.

  The entire world of the inner reaches was filled with the scars of battle. If you could recognize a a leopard’s spots, you’d know you were looking at a leopard. Just by looking at the remaining scars, Ning was able to imagine how incredibly powerful the major powers who left the scars behind were.

  “So many corpses… and almost all of them are 540,000 meters tall,” Solewind said in amazement.

  “From our position atop this mountain, I can see at least twenty-six corpses.” Ning stared from afar as well. Due to the nearby mountains blocking off his vision as well as the tremendous power throbbing within this world, Ning wasn’t able to bend light and see far beyond the surrounding mountains. In a ‘normal’ place, he would be able to see everything for countless kilometers around him, even if he was inside a completely sealed-off edifice.

  Alas… this place was different.

  “They look like cultivators, but all of their corpses are 540,000 meters tall. Some of them are even larger! Those are probably the Aberrants,” Ning said.

  “All of them should be at the Eternal Emperor level,” Solewind evaluated.

  A divinity’s height was one way to measure their power.

  Ning and the others had reached the limits of power possible for World Gods, with a total of 36,000 godgems in their bodies. As for the Dao-tree within their Jindan chaos regions, the trees were 108,000 meters tall. Their true personal height was also roughly 108,000 meters tall! Many of the great powers were born as ordinary mortals who were merely a few meters tall, and thus they were accustomed to using those heights in their ‘normal’ form. As a result, in both the Endless Territories as well as this alternate universe, most people stayed at a ‘normal’ height of just a few meters.

  Even the princes of the Brightshore Kingdom whose true bodies were the size of chaos stars would generally stay in a form where they were roughly on par with Ji Ning in size.

  The absolute hard limit for World-level cultivators was 108,000 meters.

  The absolute limit for Daolords was 540,000 meters.

  Reaching this height meant that you had reached the Verge of the Daomerge. One you succeeded in your Daomerge, your divine body would remain 540,000 meters tall and be comprised of 540,000 godgems. The difference was… upon succeeding in the Daomerge, the ‘Dao’ within those godgems would gain true eternity, making your divine body both perfect and eternal as well.

  ……

  Ning and Solewin
d continued to advance through the Prime Eaches, carefully analyzing everything.

  The two of them quickly discovered two Daolords and three World-level cultivators in the inner reaches! The world was just a billion kilometers in size, after all. They were able to quickly scan through the entire place, and they discovered a total of thirty-five corpses of incredible antiquity. Each corpse emanated an aura of tremendous power that carried a scent of eternity.

  “Thirty-five Eternal Emperors died here?” Solewind and Ning both felt breathless.

  It must be understood that even the Brightshore Kingdom only had a few Eternal Emperors, and the number of Eternal Emperors belonging to the Aeonian Kingdom could be counted on one hand. In general, Eternal Emperors were incredibly rare.

  Thirty-five Eternal Emperors… this was an incredible, terrifying figure. And yet, such a powerful force of cultivators had silently died in this place, leaving behind few traces of their passing.

  “Eternal Emperors are truly eternal existences. If they die, they die because others killed them. But in normal battles, a fatal end should result in their divine bodies being destroyed. Their bodies are in perfect shape, and all of them seem quite peaceful. Some were standing, some were sitting… it seems as though they welcomed death peacefully.” Solewind had a solemn look on his face as he sent, “I can’t even imagine what level of power is needed to cause thirty-five Eternal Emperors to silently, peacefully pass away into death.”

  Ning nodded. This truly was a terrifying thought.

  “This place gave birth to the entire universe, after all,” Ning sent mentally. “There will always be secrets which we will never know the answers to. We are still too weak and know too little.”

  “Mm.” Solewind nodded.

  “We’ve gone through this entire world. It really is filled with many opportunities, but all of them were left behind by these thirty-five ancient powers. We haven’t found the prime essences of this universe at all,” Ning sent.

  “We are too weak. We probably aren’t able to find or locate them,” Solewind sent. “Let us do the same as those two Daolords and World-level cultivators are doing. Let us search for the legacies left behind by those thirty-five major powers.”

  “Alright.” Ning nodded.

  The thirty-five ancient corpses had prepared for and welcomed death in a very calm manner, and they had left behind all of their treasures.

  Those who were bound to them by destiny would gain access to those treasures.

  Every single one of the deceased major powers was terrifyingly strong. Three of them were particularly terrifying, and the aura emanating from their corpses was so strong that Ning felt certain that they were comparable to that of the almighty Hegemon, who Ning had met in person.

  * * *

  Book 28, Chapter 25 - Three Great Leaders

  Both Ji Ning and Solewind kept a cautious watch as they advanced through the world of the inner reaches.

  “Brother Darknorth, are you seeing what I’m seeing?” Heartlord Solewind suddenly stared at one of the corpses in front of them, a corpse that was seated in the lotus position and emanating an aura of faint golden light. The awesome aura emanating from that corpse was boundlessly majestic, and it would forever be an aura of true eternity. A total of sixteen treasures had been placed before that corpse, and each of the sixteen radiated extraordinary power.

  “Are you talking about how the corpses are divided up into three groups?” Ning asked.

  “Right.” Heartlord Solewind nodded. “The thirty-five corpses here seem to be divided up into three groups, each of which had a leader. This corpse before us, the one radiating golden light… it is one of the leaders. I have the feeling that he was a Heartforce Cultivator who gained eternity through that path.”

  Ning revealed a shocked look. “A Heartforce Cultivator? Are you sure about this?”

  “I’m absolutely sure.” Solewind’s eyes were flickering with excitement as he stared at the glowing golden corpse.

  Ning couldn’t help but feel truly stunned, because Heartforce Cultivators truly were incredibly rare. The entire Heartforce Palace only had a few Daolords. For a Heartforce Cultivator to become an Eternal Emperor… Ning had never even heard of such a figure. And yet, seated right before him was the corpse of an Eternal Emperor who was a Heartforce Cultivator.

  Rumble…

  Ning and Solewind couldn’t help but walk towards that seated corpse. Suddenly, a series of invisible ripples swept outwards and brushed past the two of them.

  “Eh?” Ning suddenly sensed a powerful force push back at him, making it impossible for him to move forward by a single step.

  “It seems as though there are no ties of destiny between this ancient power and myself.” Ning smiled.

  Solewind, however, suffered no impediments at all. He glanced at Ning. “Brother Darknorth, although there are thirty-five other corpses here, I’ve already decided that I’m going to choose this one and give it a try.”

  “If you’ve made up your mind… all I can say is, be careful.” Ning nodded.

  All thirty-five of these ancient powers had peacefully welcomed death, leaving behind all of their treasures and legacies.

  If you wanted to acquire them, you would have to overcome the trials and challenges they had laid out! These trials were extremely dangerous, and some were even lethal. Daolord Owlbath had long ago warned them that many entered the inner reaches and then died there, never to return.

  “He is one of the three leaders within the inner reaches, and the only Eternal Emperor who was also a Heartforce Cultivator.” Heartlord Solewind stared at the towering, seated figure with a blazing look in his eyes. “No one in the Heartforce Palace has ever been able to become an Eternal Emperor through heartforce. Now that I’ve finally found someone who was able to do this… I’ll risk everything I have. If I can learn some of the techniques this ancient power used, I might have a shot at gaining eternity in the future as well.”

  Ning nodded.

  Heartforce Cultivators had the most difficult path of all! The Sword Palace, Spacetime Palace, and other palaces all had cultivators who were able to become Eternal Emperors. The Heartforce Palace was the only palace which had never produced a single one. In fact, the entire concept was unheard of.

  And yet… here in the inner reaches of the Genesis Lands of this alternate universe, they had discovered the corpse of a deceased Heartforce Cultivator who had reached that level.

  “I’m heading over there.” Solewind looked at Ning. “Be careful.”

  “Mm.” Ning nodded.

  Heartlord Solewind began to move forwards once more. Whoosh! A rippling wave of spacetime swept past Solewind, causing him to completely disappear.

  Ning stood there for a brief moment. Sensing that the powerful barrier in front of him was not going to disappear, he chose to turn and leave. He was still very weak in terms of heartforce; clearly, he didn’t meet the minimum threshold this deceased figure had left behind for those who wished to acquire his treasures.

  ……

  Ning advanced by himself through the inner reaches. The more he inspected those thirty-five corpses, the more he got the feeling that they did indeed belong to three different factions.

  As for the three most powerful corpses, they had auras of incredible might that were absolutely on par with the almighty Hegemon’s.

  “The second leader.” Ning stared at an enormous four-legged beast that had a pair of curved horns on its head. Its aura was filled with the intent of endless annihilation, and just looking at the beast made Ning’s heart clench. Even in death, its eyes seemed cold, lofty, and proud. This was a creature who was unwilling to bow its head to anyone. Behind it were five Eternal Emperors that looked like its retainers.

  “The third leader.” After walking forwards for a long period of time, Ning raised his head and stared at the third leader. What he saw caused his eyes to light up. This third leader was a sword-wielder!

  He saw a towering man standing
there, both hands clenched around an enormous greatsword that was a deep blue color. The hilt of the sword was pressed against his chest while the tip leaned against ground. The man himself stood there like the pillar which could hold up an entire world! He had a distant gaze in his dead, peaceful eyes. Anyone who looked at him would get the feeling that he would probably be able to survive even the annihilation of the universe itself.

  And yet… this grandmaster of the Dao of the Sword, a man who emanated an incredibly dense and heavy aura of sword-intent… had died here as well.

  Behind him stood two other men. One was a white-robed man with a smile on his face who carried three swords on his back; a violet sword, a golden sword, and a white sword. He stood there, emanating an aura of ephemeral grace, and his invisible aura of sword-intent seemed similarly ephemeral.

  The other man was dressed in azure armor and had a mask on his face, revealing only a pair of eyes that were filled with hatred. Behind him there were nine enormous blood-colored swords that had been plunged into the earth, and every single sword carried an incredibly powerful aura of murder.

  “The greatsword-wielding leader was able to convince two other Eternal Emperors of the Dao of the Sword to stand behind him as they died. The three of them had to be incredibly close friends or family,” Ning mused.

  An absolutely overwhelming amount of power could be used to cause other major powers to serve you, much as how the Eternal Emperors of the Brightshore kingdom all served the almighty Hegemon. But when everyone knew that death was certain… continued servitude was no longer contingent on mere power alone.

  If you knew you were going to die but still chose to stand behind someone, it most likely meant that you felt tremendous amounts of affection for that person.

  “Eh?” Ning’s gaze suddenly shifted to a nearby mountain range, located quite close to the three towering masters of the Dao of the Sword. The entire side of the mountain range had been completely carved flat, and the surface was filled with multiple paintings of that greatsword-wielding man. There were paintings of him in battle, paintings of him smiling, and even paintings of him drinking wine in a leisurely manner.