Chapter 1942: A Piece of Good News in the Disaster

Chapter 1942: Calamity and Good News

Upon hearing this, Ye Chen furrowed his brows. "Have you figured out who it is?"

Ren Wang took out a wine flask and sprinkled it into the starry sky, as if paying tribute to the deceased spirits.

"Dan Zun Qi Ye." Ren Wang's voice was hoarse.

Upon hearing that name, Ye Chen's heart ached suddenly.

Dan Zun Qi Ye, the master of Hong Chen Xue in her reincarnation, was renowned throughout the heavens. The Tian Ji Dan of Da Chu was created by him. He comprehended the great dao through alchemy and fell on the battlefield before reaching full achievement.

A generation of predecessors died without knowing who he was, and likely no one saw him off. How tragic.

Suddenly, Ye Chen also took out a wine flask and sprinkled it into the starry sky, paying tribute to Dan Zun Qi Ye. He said slowly, "Perhaps, we should stop cultivating for now and go find the people undergoing the calamity first, to avoid more tragedies."

"You still don't understand what it means to undergo the calamity in the mortal world." Ren Wang said leisurely. "The calamity is one's own tribulation, and it's most taboo for outsiders to interfere. One wrong move could harm them instead. Whether it's fortune or misfortune depends on themselves. Only when their merits are complete will the calamity end."

"We won't interfere, but that doesn't mean the Hong Huang won't," Ye Chen said lightly.

"The wave of calamities will be an unspoken understanding between the heavens and the Hong Huang." Ren Wang's words were flat. "It affects the whole body. The myriad domains of the heavens are afraid, and the great clans of Hong Huang are afraid too. If they interfere recklessly, even the quasi-emperors of Hong Huang will be affected."

With that, Ren Wang sighed and turned around, his steps heavy.

Ye Chen withdrew his gaze and followed.

For the rest of the journey, the starry sky was extremely calm, and the two walked through the void without speaking. The atmosphere was very oppressive, as if both knew that in this wave of calamities, more people would perish in foreign lands. Dan Zun Qi Ye was just the first, but not the last.

This walk lasted three years.

In these three years, Ye Chen was constantly at war, fighting thousands of battles, big and small. He used slaughter to refine his Emperor Dao Fu Xi array. His formations were stained with fresh blood, and precisely because of this slaughter, his array skills advanced.

These three years were also full of opportunities and fortunes.

One after another, Ye Chen found over a hundred Dun Jia Tian Zi characters, enhancing his formations and making them even more powerful.

However, these three years also brought continuous bad news of deaths.

As thought three years ago, the people undergoing calamities kept falling, in both Hong Huang and the heavens.

Da Chu was not spared either. After Dan Zun Qi Ye, Jiu Huang Tian Sheng Zu, Shen Dian Sheng Zu, Kun Lun Xu Sheng Zu, Da Luo Zhu Tian Sheng Zu, and Da Xia Long Chao Sheng Zu all perished one after another.

Every day, Ye Chen and Ren Wang sprinkled wine into the starry sky.

The wave of calamities came too fiercely, devouring one peak quasi-emperor after another, dealing a heavy blow to the human world's combat strength. The pass of the calamity was too terrifying; even peak quasi-emperors could hardly escape the vastness. Perhaps, only three or four out of ten quasi-emperors could truly cross the calamity.

In the fourth year, Ye Chen stopped in front of an ancient star.

This star was enormously vast, comparable to Wang Xuan Star, but unfortunately, it had no star source inside and couldn't nurture life. The entire place was dead silent, with no grass growing, not even basic starlight; only dust of ages, and few cultivators set foot there.

Ye Chen lifted his foot, intending to enter and rest.

Ren Wang reached out and grabbed him. "There's someone undergoing calamity inside; don't disturb him."

"Is it a quasi-emperor of Da Chu?" Ye Chen retracted his foot.

"It's Jiang Chen." Ren Wang replied, as if he could see through the star to a small grave in the deep mountains. "Jiang Chen, in this life, you're really going against corpses. Even in undergoing calamity and entering the world, you're still a corpse. I hope you can cross this pass and be reborn in the calamity."

"If others enter this ancient star, will they also disturb his calamity?" Ye Chen asked.

"That depends on who it is." Ren Wang turned and continued on his way. "Moreover, you and I knew he was the Jiang Chen undergoing calamity, so we would disturb him. As for others, if they don't know his identity, it's fine. What headaches most is those who have karma with him; good karma is okay, but bad karma is a hindrance and will disturb his calamity. The path of calamity has too many variables."

Ye Chen remained silent, just quietly listening.

Perhaps, even Ren Wang couldn't figure out such matters of calamity; it's too profound, and one could perish at any moment.

Hmm?

While walking, Ren Wang suddenly stopped, constantly calculating with his fingers.

Seeing this, Ye Chen became anxious, fearing it was bad news.

After three to five breaths, Ren Wang's brows relaxed. "It's over; Dong Huang Tai Xin has crossed the calamity."

"So fast?" Ye Chen was surprised.

"In just over twenty years, she successfully underwent the calamity; I'm also surprised." Ren Wang couldn't help but laugh. "An unparalleled empress who has lived two lives is indeed full of merits. Compared to living a second life, this undergoing calamity is just child's play. Though unexpected, it's within expectations."

"May all the quasi-emperors of Da Chu pass smoothly."

"With her in Da Chu, I can rest assured." Ren Wang smiled and set off again. Because of Dong Huang Tai Xin, his steps were much lighter. After so many bad news, finally some good news.

Ye Chen followed, and the gloom in his heart dissipated a layer.

The two walked side by side, gradually fading into the starry sky.

Time passed quietly, another six years, ten springs and autumns, ten winters and summers, ten flowers blooming and withering. Since leaving the gates of the heavens, it had been thirty years, and they had traversed piece after piece of star domains.

This decade was particularly long.

In slaughter, Ye Chen practiced arrays, and his mastery of formations advanced by leaps and bounds. In transformation, he completed nirvana; he could now set up the eighty-one arrays of Emperor Dao Fu Xi, the only lacking was speed, which required more time to hone. He still had much to learn and much to comprehend.

In these ten years, the starry sky was not peaceful.

What was most watched was the Son of Heavenly Punishment and the Son of the Earth, fighting time and again, each time a draw.

Besides them, there was another treasure, that is, Ye Ling.

This girl from Ye Chen's family was getting further on the path of causing trouble. Wherever there are gatherings of cultivators, there are tales of her, making the world accustomed to it—who let her be the child of the Holy Body.

Talents aren't just these three.

In recent years, a black fatty named Tang San Shao has also become famous; he can freely control the Xue Ji Xian Jie, beating the new generation of Hong Huang so they can't lift their heads, and they avoid him when they see him.

For this, many hidden sects often invite him home for a chat.

This so-called chat isn't really chatting; three sentences aren't without Xue Ji Xian Jie; they all want to learn some techniques from Tang San Shao. Unfortunately, Tang San Shao's immortal-level cheat is innate, making the world very regretful, so they won't trouble Tang San Shao.

Speaking of which, on this side, Ye Chen and Ren Wang entered another ancient star.

This time, it's a mortal ancient star, not even one-thousandth of Zhu Que Xing, unobtrusive in the starry sky. There are no cultivators inside, purely mortals, and not a trace of spiritual energy in the world.

For some reason, upon entering this ancient star, Ren Wang became very silent. One could see the vicissitudes and pain in his old eyes, making him look even older, completely different from his usual self.

Ye Chen frowned; it was the first time he saw Ren Wang like this.

The two, one in front and one behind, came to a small village. The village was by the mountain and water, with many rice fields. Under the bright moonlight, it was peaceful and tranquil. This simplicity was hard to find in the cultivator world.

At the foot of the mountain, Ren Wang stopped.

There, another small grave, overgrown with weeds, even the tombstone was mottled and weathered, unknown how many years it had been buried, only known to be very ancient and distant, covered in dust of ages.

"Yue Hua, I've come to see you." Ren Wang spoke, his voice hoarse.

At this moment, he removed his cloak, revealing full head of white hair, like a decrepit old man, his old eyes filled with turbid tears. In the blur, he could see a woman smiling back at him.

"She was the woman I met during my calamity."

"She had no peerless beauty, ordinary and plain, but gentle and kind, with a bodhisattva-like heart."

"I buried her myself and erected the stele for her."

Ren Wang said while pulling weeds around the grave, speaking unhurriedly, as if to himself or to Ye Chen, his voice hoarse, his old eyes vicissitudinous, telling that long-ago story.

Ye Chen stood silently, not speaking.

Ren Wang's words depicted an ancient love for him. He was a cultivator, she was a mortal; in the darkness, it seemed a red thread bound them two. Alas! Fate plays tricks; destined for immortal and mortal to part ways, watching the beauty age day by day, that state of mind was too desolate.

After a thousand years, he lived on, but she was buried in the years.

Only now did he truly see Ren Wang.

This was the real Ren Wang, who also had romantic feelings. His usual lewdness was just hiding his weakness, only revealed in the dead of night, making people sigh.

A breeze blew, and Ye Chen slowly turned around.

This quiet night should be left for Ren Wang. The road was too far, the years too long; he needed time to talk properly with his former wife, to resolve this mortal karma.

He left, and Ren Wang stayed.

Looking from afar, his back was desolate, hunched over, wiping the dust from the tombstone, pulling weeds around the grave.

In the night, one could always hear his words.

And in this world, the only listener was Yue Hua in the grave.

Ye Chen left the village and wandered all the way to the nearest ancient city, a mortal ancient city. At night, it was still prosperous, with big red lanterns hung high, vibrant as flowers, the streets bustling with people, not lacking street performers swallowing oil and spitting fire, dancing spears and sticks, drawing cheers.

Ye Chen walked quietly, quietly watching the various states of the world.

Immortals and mortals have different paths; mortals live only a hundred years, while cultivators live a thousand without decay. Perhaps one seclusion is a dynasty change in the human world. Though the paths differ, the end is the same; whether mortal or cultivator, all escape not death, ultimately just a handful of yellow soil.

Walking, Ye Chen closed his eyes; having died once, he deeply knew how distant life and death are.

One life and one death, this period is the mortal world;

One death and one life, this cycle is reincarnation.

The birth and death of people are like the other shore flower on the Yellow Springs Road: the flower is life, the leaf is death; flowers bloom without leaves, leaves exist without flowers; flowers and leaves never meet in life after life, birth and death never intersect year after year.

Perhaps, there was that moment when flower meets leaf, life meets death.

And that moment is eternity.

At this moment, Ye Chen stopped, as if in a thought, he captured that moment.

His heart realm suddenly sublimated, gaining another insight into the great dao of all things. His cultivation, which hadn't stirred in thirty years, for the first time underwent a change, forcefully breaking through to the peak of Saint King realm.