Targeted sweeps, thirty thousand years later, the Heavenly Emperor... had grown old

Thirty thousand years had passed on the Immortal Court calendar.

At the edge of the universe, a tiny yet supreme figure strolled through the starry sky.

In this barren region devoid of essence Qi, where the Great Dao did not manifest, his arrival was like a brilliant star shedding its radiance, bringing a little vitality to this place.

"The Daos of life and the soul have approached the limits of this world."

"The same holds true for the Sacred Body, the Black Emperor, and even the Great Dao of Fire obtained from that drop of phoenix blood."

"Together with my own Great Dao of Chaos, six Daos coexist, each cultivated to its pinnacle. If I could step into a new world now and escape these restrictions, I would certainly make several leaps forward in a short time!"

"It's just..."

Lu Qingyun lowered his gaze.

A presence flowed slowly around him like a gentle breeze, the prevailing tenor of the universe's outer reaches.

Eternal, enduring, seemingly unchanged by the passage of years.

Though to Lu Qingyun, it was incomparably weak.

Yet it was also exceedingly stable. No matter how he dispersed it, its nature could not be altered.

"Forget it. Back to the Immortal Court."

"The rules of the forbidden zones do indeed differ from those of the greater universe. I don't yet know what mysteries the other forbidden zones hold, but the Immortal Court... is like a place that truly fell from the immortal realm. The upper limit of what it can accommodate... is a notch higher than that of the greater universe."

"Even after searching the entire greater universe, there really is no other place so extraordinary."

Lu Qingyun shook his head.

Yet he did not immediately step away, instead turning slightly to the side.

His gaze pierced through more than half the universe, as though he had spotted some great disturbance.

He could not help chuckling.

"Here we go again."

At the center of the universe, that black lotus bloomed once more.

Just as it had before.

A towering figure, seemingly upheld by heaven and earth and favored by the Great Dao, emerged from within and walked toward Fallen Immortal Star as leisurely as if strolling through a courtyard.

At this, the beings of all races let out heartfelt laughter.

They were neither worried nor nervous.

For this scene had already played out several times over the past few thousand years.

And every time, the process and outcome had been exactly the same.

Set out.

Choose a forbidden zone, enter, and slaughter.

Then return, recover from his injuries, and lie low for a while.

Then emerge again and repeat the process.

Even the Supremes within the forbidden zones had tacitly accepted this method of sweeping them clean.

For there were fully eight forbidden zones sharing the burden.

So long as a certain interval was maintained, keeping within the limits of their tolerance, they could accept losing this number of Supremes.

After all, the emergence of Heavenly Venerable Taiyi back then had made one thing clear.

The number of Supremes within these forbidden zones had already grown to the point of breaking the ecological chain.

If their numbers could be reduced this way, it was not necessarily a bad thing for quite a few Supremes.

Besides...

The more important point was this.

All along, only the Black Emperor had been somewhat diligent in his killing.

As for the other one...

"Still not planning to emerge?"

The Black Emperor lowered his gaze, sensing Ye Mingyuan's presence.

He knew Ye Mingyuan had no intention of emerging and was still cultivating diligently.

Over the past few thousand years.

The number of times Ye Mingyuan had emerged could be counted on one's fingers.

It was not that he had completely stopped sweeping the forbidden zones clean, only that the frequency had indeed dropped considerably.

It seemed like lazy governance.

Yet it was not neglect of duty.

The Black Emperor withdrew his gaze without saying anything.

He could also see what Ye Mingyuan was thinking. He acknowledged it, but did not agree with it.

Everyone had different aspirations.

His willingness to spend more time sweeping the forbidden zones clean did not mean he would force others to share his mindset.

At least, given Ye Mingyuan's achievements thus far.

He had long since proven worthy of his title as Heavenly Emperor.

As for himself...

From the very beginning, he had decided to sweep the forbidden zones clean alone!

In his place of seclusion.

Ye Mingyuan sensed the gaze directed toward him and knew that the Black Emperor had emerged once more.

Yet he made no move.

"Taking action again?"

"Has he truly reached the end of his path, or has he simply given up on advancing further?"

Ye Mingyuan shook his head and closed his eyes.

Yet he did not enter his deepest state of contemplation, keeping constant watch on developments outside.

He was ready to emerge with overwhelming force and suppress those Supremes like a thunderbolt should the Black Emperor suffer grievous injuries and face the danger of death.

Fortunately, just as before.

Nothing unexpected happened.

After effortlessly slaughtering two Supremes, the Black Emperor returned once more.

But as Ye Mingyuan watched the Black Emperor's retreating figure, thoughts surged through his eyes.

For he had sensed...

Signs that the Black Emperor's blood and vitality were declining.

He thought it over.

Though he did not know the Black Emperor's exact age, the words about ten thousand wasted years he had spoken when attaining the Dao made it clear.

His true age was greater than Ye Mingyuan's own.

By now, at least thirty thousand years had passed.

An ordinary Great Emperor who had not found a Divine Medicine of Immortality should have long since become withered bones at such an age.

And the Black Emperor had attained the Dao as a Divine Medicine of Immortality.

His lifespan was naturally long, yet it too had a limit.

Now, he seemed to be approaching his twilight years...

"Time is merciless. Even a lifetime as splendid as flowers in full bloom, even invincibility throughout the world, cannot escape this final stroke of time's blade."

"The path I walk is not wrong."

Ye Mingyuan murmured, myriad thoughts filling his mind.

An icy, powerful, and exceptionally aloof figure surfaced in his mind.

From the moment he had attained the Dao, he had cast aside all duties and turned himself into a forbidden zone.

Now, he had become unimaginably powerful.

Perhaps... he was the one who truly saw clearly.

One ought to live long and endure, sitting back to watch the world change...

Deep within the forbidden zone of Chaotic God Mountain.

The phenomena caused by the Supremes' deaths just now had yet to fade completely.

The blood Qi lingering between heaven and earth was drawn by some force into an enormous mass of Immortal Source.

"Did you feel it? His fists... have slowed."

"So what if he's a Heavenly Emperor? Thirty thousand years have passed. It's about time he grew old. Still... I really do envy him. Had I possessed such a long lifespan back then, I might well have... attempted an ascent to immortality!"

"Heh-very funny. Don't tell that one again."

"Which of us here wasn't invincible for an entire lifetime? Yet in the end, didn't we all lose our spirit and fall to this state? Had we truly possessed the aptitude to become immortals, we wouldn't have perished halfway along the path for lack of lifespan."

"Why talk about this? The Heavenly Emperor has grown old. Everyone... any ideas?"

"None. Times are different. In this era, there's still a Heavenly Emperor out there who's lived a second life. Ideas? Ideas about getting ourselves killed?"

"Oh? That isn't necessarily so. That Sacred Body Heavenly Emperor hasn't emerged in a very long time, proof enough of his steadfast pursuit of the Dao and thirst for eternal life. In that respect, how similar he is to everyone here. But the final outcome..."

All at once, the voices fell silent.

Whether because a sore spot had been touched or because something had occurred to them, none could say.

Upon Chaotic God Mountain.

Cold winds blew, turning the fallen leaves from green to yellow, then from yellow to green again.

The seasons changed, and the years flowed on.