Chapter 2428: Ancient Desolate Entry

This was a desolate expanse of star space, vast and boundless, with no stars in sight and not a trace of starlight. It seemed shrouded in a veil of clouds, bleak, icy, and dark, with only wisps of flowing sand drifting along, carried by the stellar winds, bearing their stories toward the fringes of the universe.

Here was Tian Huang, where the great Dacheng Shengti Di Huang once fought to protect Yue Shang in her path to emperorship. It was here that he single-handedly battled the five Heavenly Demons Emperors, and here that his body was destroyed and his spirit extinguished.

At some point, a domain gate materialized in the distance.

Then, Di Huang stepped out, followed by three others: the Earth Elder of Tianxuan Gate, Zixuan, and the Human King. The latter two were the remnant soul of the Donghua Empress and the remnant soul of the Human Sovereign. Today, they had come to witness the reopening of the Taigu Honghuang entrance.

The three arrived first, with Hongyan and Ye Chen likely still on their way.

"This is Tian Huang?" the Earth Elder asked, full of curiosity. After landing, he looked around, left and right. The surroundings were pitch dark, with no stars visible and no scent of life energy.

Though he was a person of the heavens and had heard of Tian Huang, this was his first time here.

Compared to him, the Human King was much more composed. As the remnant soul of the Human Sovereign, he was knowledgeable despite his weakened state. He had been to this place before, more than once, and was accustomed to it.

Di Huang stood silently, neither speaking nor moving, his radiant golden eyes unable to hide a sense of daze and nostalgia. After millions of years, returning to this familiar ground brought even more weariness. The battle against the emperors from back then still felt vivid in his mind. To protect Yue Shang's ascension, he had met his end here.

Now, eons have passed. The fallen Di Huang still lingers in the world, while the empress Yue Shang has long become dust in history. The supreme romance was filled with regrets—a single missed opportunity spanned countless cycles of change. At the end of time, it was impossible to see that supreme beauty again. All that remained was a love riddled with wounds, destined to fade into myth along with the legends.

Beside him, Zixuan's beautiful eyes were already brimming with mist, blurring her vision.

As the remnant soul of the empress, how could she not have come to this place? After Di Huang's death in ancient times, the empress visited every year, carrying a basket of flowers to scatter peach blossoms across Tian Huang.

Accompanied by a hum, another domain gate appeared.

This time, out stepped Hongyan and Ye Chen, arriving together like a couple.

Hongyan, of course, had been to Tian Huang before.

As for Ye Chen, like the Earth Elder, it was his first visit. What he saw was desolation, and what he felt was profound sorrow. The strongest sacred body in history had fallen in battle here. Faintly, he could still hear the war god's roars—he had fought for his loved one.

"Let's begin!" The long silence was finally broken by the Human King's words.

As he spoke, the Earth Elder stepped forward and stood still, with Ye Chen at his side.

Immediately, the Earth Elder's divine body trembled slightly, and a beam of divine light shot from within him, transforming into a divine pattern—an emperor-level divine pattern radiating supreme emperor's might, the aura of Xianwu Emperor Zun. Its imperial divine glow was intensely hot and dazzling, illuminating this stretch of star space with brilliance.

Under everyone's gaze, the emperor-level divine pattern soared like a beam of immortal light into the heavens, finally suspending in the void and slowly merging into nothingness. In this world, it was no longer traceable.

At the same time, Ye Chen cast a Nian Yongheng, freezing time. Flowers of the other shore bloomed one after another, proudly unfurling across the star space, each one a fiery red.

Buzz!

The star space trembled violently with a loud hum, and a seam of light appeared vertically from top to bottom, then spread to both sides. A massive gate of light burst open, towering like a pillar to the sky. Its size was unknown, but standing before it, people looked like mere ants.

"Is this the entrance to Taigu Honghuang?" Ye Chen murmured, his expression dazed.

He wasn't the only one; the Human King and the Earth Elder wore the same look. Even as two Dacheng Shengti, it was their first time truly seeing the entrance to Taigu Honghuang, sealed for over ten thousand years.

"The Emperor Zun truly sees through heaven and earth," the Earth Elder said with deep reverence, glancing subconsciously at Ye Chen. To predict events from ten thousand years ago for ten thousand years later, and even have Ye Chen comprehend Nian Yongheng within his calculations—that emperor was truly terrifying.

This scene appeared coincidental but was, in fact, inevitable.

Ye Chen said nothing, only gazing at the Taigu Honghuang entrance.

Peering through the gate, it was a chaotic haze, full of bizarre phenomena, with lightning flashing and thunder rumbling. The path ahead was invisible, and a mysterious force overflowed, not belonging to the heavens, vast and immense, making hearts quiver. It felt as if, deep in the chaos, a god lurked—one capable of world destruction. Even Di Huang and Hongyan furrowed their brows, sensing the dreadful aura.

"Was my first life the one that entered from here?"

Ye Chen's expression turned dazed. In that moment, it seemed he could glimpse a fragmented scene: his first life, as Xianwu Emperor Zun, clad in emperor armor, leading a million divine generals on a certain mission, leaving their homeland in the heavens.

From that day forth, he left an unsolved mystery for the myriad realms: the great emperor fell in battle, the million divine generals were wiped out, leaving only a wisp of true fire in the world.

With the entrance open, the Human King and the Earth Elder both stepped back together.

"Sacred Monarch, may Zixuan... may Zixuan hug you?"

Zixuan's eyes were filled with mist, her words draining all her courage, carrying all her hopes since gaining sentience. She was the remnant soul of the empress, but not the empress herself. Hugging the empress's beloved would be her greatest wish in eternal life.

Di Huang smiled without speaking, implicitly agreeing.

Zixuan smiled through her tears and stepped forward, embracing Di Huang. She buried her face deeply, wrapping her arms around him with all her strength—it was her first time being so bold.

In an instant, the mist in her eyes turned to frost, her tearful gaze wetting Di Huang's chest. The empress's remnant soul bore the empress's memories and emotions. Yue Shang loved Di Huang, and so did she. Only in this moment of parting did she dare to express it truly, for this farewell might be the farthest distance between life and death.

"How wonderful." Ye Chen chuckled.

"Ye Chen, can you hug me?" Hongyan whispered, her beautiful eyes soft with affection.

Ye Chen smiled and stepped forward, opening his broad arms.

This hug held no improper thoughts—it was a hug between old friends, between sacred bodies, and a farewell embrace.

But for Hongyan, it was different. She wrapped her arms around him, in that moment using all her strength, as if trying to merge herself into Ye Chen's body.

Crack! Crack!

The sound of bones fracturing crackled from within Ye Chen's body. Hongyan was nothing like Zixuan—Zixuan was hugging a Dacheng Shengti, so no amount of force would harm Di Huang. But Hongyan was the real deal, a Dacheng Shengti herself. Even a slight effort from her was unbearable for Ye Chen, let alone her full strength—it nearly crushed him. Just witnessing this scene was painfully agonizing.

"Let's... talk properly." Ye Chen forced out these words, blood surging in his throat.

Hongyan smiled tenderly, her gaze full of emotion, finally easing her grip. She channeled sacred body energy into Ye Chen's body, mending his sacred bones. If not for this parting, she wouldn't have lost control like this, nor expressed her feelings so eagerly. She feared that once she left, it would be forever.

The supreme queen now seemed more like a shy bride, her face buried against him, greedily listening to Ye Chen's heartbeat. His chest was as warm as it had been back then, full of magic, making her unwilling to pull away.

One was an empress's remnant soul embracing a Dacheng Shengti, the other a Dacheng female sacred body embracing a quasi-emperor sacred body. This scene seemed frozen in time, carrying emotion and tears, reluctance and longing.

Behind them, the Human King and the Earth Elder felt somewhat out of place, sensing a glow above their heads, like light bulbs.

At the same time, the two turned their heads in unison—the Human King looking at the Earth Elder, the Earth Elder looking at the Human King. For some reason, they both thought: How about we hug too?

The moment the idea arose, they felt a urge to vomit. Seeing you, you old thing, just makes me sick.

Zing!

Suddenly, a sword cry echoed, and a streak of seven-colored divine light flashed into the gate.

"Zhuxian Sword." The Earth Elder snorted coldly, killing intent surging.

"Stay calm." The Human King said leisurely. This know-it-all seemed to have known the Zhuxian Sword would come—or perhaps, it was all part of Di Huang and Hongyan's plan.

They couldn't capture the Zhuxian Sword, so they had to lure it into Taigu Honghuang.

This might bring more chaos to Taigu Honghuang, but for the peace of the heavens, it had to be done. All dangers would be shouldered by Di Huang and Hongyan.

In the end, Zixuan released Di Huang, and Hongyan released Ye Chen.

"Come back alive."

"Come back alive."

Zixuan choked back sobs, and Ye Chen smiled. One was the empress's remnant soul, the other the emperor of Great Chu, speaking in unison. "Come back alive" would be a lifelong wish.

Di Huang and Hongyan smiled, then silently turned and stepped into the gate. Di Huang donned his battle armor, and Hongyan her war robes. The man and woman, two Dacheng Shengti, resembled war gods of the eight wastelands and a supreme queen, their figures tall and straight. Under the watchful eyes of Ye Chen and the others, they gradually faded into the distance, leaving only two vague and weary silhouettes for the heavens.

Zixuan could no longer hold back, crying even more bitterly, like a tearful figure.

Back when Di Huang went to battle the five emperors, it had been the same—he left the empress with just a silhouette. And that silhouette truly became a farewell. How similar it was to this moment.

This departure might indeed be eternal, or they might end up like Emperor Zun and the million divine generals, perishing in Taigu Honghuang.

Buzz!

The star space shook, the gate of light hummed, and slowly closed, vanishing as if it had never existed. This stretch of star space fell back into darkness.

Ye Chen was silent, slowly opening the sachet Hongyan had given him. It wasn't some heaven-defying treasure, but a lock of hair—Hongyan's hair, carrying a faint feminine fragrance.

A woman's lock of hair, the red thread of the moon elder—given was the hair, but planted was a bond of fate.

Ah!

The Human King sighed, and the Earth Elder sighed too. The empress's remnant soul continued the empress's bond, loving the Dacheng Shengti Di Huang, while the Dacheng female sacred body loved Ye Chen.

These two romances were both legendary tales.

In the darkness, the four of them departed.

Perhaps no one noticed that at the spot where the gate vanished, a trace of seven-colored immortal light flashed and disappeared. Not even Ye Chen and the others, or even the Dao Ancestor and Ming Emperor, were aware.

It was the Zhuxian Sword, its true abilities transcending heaven. It had actually turned back.