"Undertaker" Returns, an Old Friend's Waiting

The mountain-sized warship slowly rose into the air. Chen Changsheng stood on its deck, gazing toward the Great Qian Dynasty.

Fifty years had passed in the blink of an eye, and the faces of old friends surfaced in Chen Changsheng's mind once more.

The kind-hearted, timid young monk; Ninth Senior Brother, the little tagalong who had always followed behind him; and Third Senior Brother, gravely wounded.

As well as that little girl who always loved calling him "Brother Changsheng."

A hundred flavors of emotion churned in his heart, and an indescribable feeling appeared in Chen Changsheng's eyes.

At that moment, Zuo Xinghe walked over.

"Sir, what are you looking at?"

Zuo Xinghe's words pulled Chen Changsheng back from his memories.

"Just looking at old friends."

"But the Great Qian Dynasty is a full 30,000 Li away from here. Can you see them, sir?"

"When old friends are in the heart, there is naturally no need to look with one's eyes."

Hearing Chen Changsheng's words, Zuo Xinghe pondered them carefully, yet he could never understand Chen Changsheng's feelings.

Seeing this, Chen Changsheng smiled and patted his shoulder.

"Don't dwell on it. As you are now, you cannot understand such emotions."

"When you have crossed the long river of years and look back again, you will understand this feeling."

"You're a decent lad, and your mind is fairly quick."

"Since we met, I'll give you a twenty percent discount. When that day comes, I'll personally bury you."

As soon as those words left his mouth, Zuo Xinghe's face fell at once.

He was only a hundred years old this year. Strictly speaking, he had only just come of age.

Chen Changsheng had such a wealth of experience that, by conservative estimates, he had lived for over two hundred years. By that reckoning, no matter what, he ought to go before Zuo Xinghe!

After grumbling inwardly for a moment, Zuo Xinghe smiled.

"Xinghe appreciates your kind intentions, sir, but as for coffins... let's wait a while longer."

Chen Changsheng merely gave Zuo Xinghe's forced smile a faint glance before turning and returning to his room.

Even Emperor Zuo would one day reach the end of his Lifespan. Naturally, Zuo Xinghe could not escape it either.

To Chen Changsheng, time was merely something insignificant.

Supreme Clarity Temple.

"Cough, cough, cough!"

Li Jinshui coughed violently. Before him stood eight graves.

Those eight graves belonged to his former master and fellow disciples.

The once elegant Supreme Clarity Temple had now become utterly dilapidated, and even the Couplet Chen Changsheng had written by hand had grown somewhat blurred.

"Senior Brother, why have you come here again?"

Song Yuanshan could not help reproaching his Third Senior Brother when he saw how unsteady he was on his feet.

Li Jinshui smiled upon hearing this. "That is what I should be saying to you."

"You are now the temple master of Supreme Clarity Temple, the renowned Invincible Daoist. The task of holding back Night Moon Kingdom's attacks still rests on you."

"If something happens to you, what will everyone else do?"

"As for me, I am merely someone about to die. Even if Night Moon Kingdom discovers me, there is nothing they can do with me."

Song Yuanshan fell silent at those words.

Back when Chen Changsheng had left Supreme Clarity Temple, he had intended to bring back the bodies of their masters.

A long time passed. Just when Song Yuanshan had been ready to give up as well, Master Yixiu, who had vanished for a long time, returned.

Not only had he brought back Night Moon Kingdom's Princess, but he had also brought back the bodies of their masters.

Only, he had not brought Chen Changsheng back.

After a long while, Song Yuanshan spoke. "Senior Brother, do you think Brother Changsheng will return?"

"Of course he will return, because he still has to collect my corpse and bury me!"

"Junior Brother is a man who values his promises. So long as he has said something, he will certainly do it."

"Now that I am about to die, it means he will be back soon."

As he spoke, Li Jinshui raised his head and looked into the distance, as though he had already seen that familiar figure.

A moment later, Li Jinshui wearily leaned against Nascent Soul Immortal's gravestone and waved his hand.

"Go. You still carry many burdens on your shoulders. There is no need to spend every day with a dead man like me."

"I will soon be seeing Master. I have so many things in my heart that I want to tell them."

"As for what exactly happened in Night Moon Kingdom's Forbidden Ground, give up on the thought of learning the truth."

"Master Yixiu will not tell you, nor will Princess Wanyan."

"We promised each other that we would take this secret into our graves."

Faced with his Third Senior Brother's words, Song Yuanshan fell silent once more. Yet in the end, he did not doggedly press for the truth as he once had.

Because the grown-up Song Yuanshan knew that, for some matters, learning the truth was not necessarily a good thing.

After Song Yuanshan left, Li Jinshui stroked Nascent Soul Immortal's gravestone and spoke softly.

"Master, how did a perfectly fine Supreme Clarity Temple become like this?"

"Are power and Lifespan truly worth more than everything else?"

As he spoke, Li Jinshui's eyes filled with sorrow.

When Master Yixiu had returned, he had already told him all the truth.

After learning the truth, Li Jinshui could not accept reality.

Because he could not accept that their kindly grandmaster had killed his own master and fellow disciples.

Yet cruel reality would not cease to happen simply because someone could not accept it.

Left with no choice, Li Jinshui and Yixiu made an agreement: they would never reveal this secret.

As for Master Yuhua of Supreme Clarity Temple...

He had fallen not long after the war between nations began.

Aboard the warship.

The massive warship had flown for a full month. By now, Chen Changsheng and the others were drawing ever closer to the Great Qian Dynasty.

As the distance closed, Chen Changsheng gradually received more news concerning the Great Qian Dynasty.

The Great Qian Dynasty had already been completely occupied by Night Moon Kingdom. Only a few forces remained, barely clinging to life.

Besides that, Chen Changsheng received some other news.

For instance, Night Moon Kingdom's Demon King had been killed by the "Undertaker," while Supreme Clarity Temple's new temple master possessed peerless fist techniques and was revered by the world as the Invincible Daoist.

"Sir, is this Undertaker really that formidable?"

"He actually killed a Demon King without a sound in Demon Race territory. You are from the Great Qian Dynasty."

"Night Moon Kingdom borders the Great Qian Dynasty. Have you heard any news about him?"

Zuo Xinghe carefully analyzed the intelligence he had just obtained, attempting to learn more about the strength of his future enemy.

Chen Changsheng smacked his lips at the sight.

"I know the Undertaker, but don't worry. He will not stand in Xuanwu Kingdom's way."

Upon hearing Chen Changsheng's words, Zuo Xinghe immediately voiced a different opinion.

"That is not right, sir. This man's movements are mysterious, and his temperament is impossible to fathom."

"Perhaps he is the sort of murderous madman whose moods change as swiftly as the wind. Otherwise, why would he call himself something as ominous as the Undertaker?"

"It is necessary for us to prepare for danger before it arrives."

"Undertaker is my nickname. How did I not know that my moods changed on a whim and that I was some murderous madman?"

Zuo Xinghe: ???