The Severed Past, Present, and Future (Happy National Day)

What grudge do you have against the Emperor Tianshun of the imperial family?

"Young Hero Guo, you misunderstand. I'm not seeking personal revenge," An Ruyu blinked, "But for the sake of the Human Emperor."

"The Human Emperor?"

Yu Tunzhou's first thought was, "What a huge flag!"

The wind and the woman were both blowing loudly.

But in an instant, he remembered his entanglement with An Ruyu, which began in Pinghu County and always revolved around the Human Emperor.

The Incense-Smelling Cult has indeed always operated under the name of the Human Emperor's lineage.

He glanced around and suddenly asked, "You sensed in advance that this grotto-heaven had been corrupted by the Nine Netherworlds?"

"It's just a suspicion," An Ruyu shook her head, "But also a confirmation, to confirm whether the Human Emperor's power has weakened."

Yu Tunzhou frowned, immediately recalling his conversation with Huntian not long ago.

He suddenly thought of a question.

"Is the Human Emperor really dead?"

He stared intently into An Ruyu's eyes.

The latter remained expressionless; his eyes revealed regret as he said, "From our perspective, the Human Emperor is no different from someone who has fallen."

"What do you mean?" Yu Tunzhou immediately pressed, "What do you mean by 'our angle'? Are there other angles?"

Regarding the Human Emperor, all historical records assume that Human Emperor is dead, but no one has actually seen his Human Emperor, and even Human Emperor true tomb has not been found.

Instead of answering, An Ruyu asked, "In Young Hero Guo's opinion, what should the passage of time look like?"

Yu Tunzhou frowned. "What are you trying to say?"

An Ruyu raised her hand and swept it across her body, instantly turning the blood remaining in the hall into a long, winding river.

"In Young Hero Guo's eyes, the past, present, and future should be continuous, right?"

She lightly tapped her finger, cutting the Blood River into three sections, seemingly corresponding to the past, present, and future.

Yu Tunzhou frowned, unsure of what An Ruyu was trying to say.

These three elements are not consecutive; how can they be reversed?

Wouldn't the entire cause and effect of the world collapse then?

"For ordinary people below the Dao Lord, time is linear, unidirectional, and irreversible."

"But for Dao Lord and above, especially the Sect Master Sage of various sects, the past, present, and future exist in parallel. They simultaneously live in the past, oversee the present, and plan for the future."

This is the ancient world order.

"The respective Sect Master Sage absolutely rule this world, and no new saints are born."

"But after a great calamity in ancient times, the past of these three elements 'detached itself from the Long River of Time,' causing a break in the continuity of history."

An Ruyu flicked her fingers and gently manipulated the first section of the Blood River, separating it from the long river and placing it outside.

"For example, this is the past." We cannot determine the final point in time of this past; we only know that it is broken off from the river of time in which we exist. Even Dao Lord cannot flow backwards to return to any point in time of this past.

"The only beings capable of achieving this are saints of the Human Emperor level."

After unifying the Central Plains, the Human Emperor has been trying to explore the many mysteries of the ancient times, wanting to find out where the Three Pure Ones and other great Sect Master Sage went, and whether they all remained in the "past."

"If so, why are they dwelling on the past, refusing to move forward, and even giving up on the future?"

"This is what the Human Emperor had been doing all along, and it was because of this that he met his demise."

Yu Tunzhou's expression shifted in shock. "A death sentence?!"

"Who wants to Human Emperor? And who can Human Emperor?"

Unless there were other Sect Master Sage besides the Human Emperor in High Antiquity times!

"Nobody knows."

An Ruyu shook her head and said, "The sect only knows that the Human Emperor chose to go alone to the past where the Primordial Era was in the end," and never returned. So, for us, the Human Emperor's life or death is actually no different."

Yu Tunzhou was speechless with unease; had the Human Emperor traveled to the "past"?

This statement reminded Yu Tunzhou of something Guangchengzi said in Dragon Gate: [The Three Pure Ones disappeared before the collapse of Heavenly Court; they did not leave, but rather "remained in the past."]

"Will that independent 'past' give rise to a new future timeline?" Yu Tunzhou asked in a deep voice.

An Ruyu shook her head. "No one knows, at least not those of us in the present or the future."

Yu Tunzhou stopped asking questions and fell into deep thought.

He had never expected to hear such shocking news from An Ruyu during this trip.

Even Huntian fell silent at this moment, and no matter how Yu Tunzhou called out to him, there was no response. Si Ping was lost in thought.

But he quickly realized that he could use the Muscle-Tendon Changing Classic to briefly travel to the ancient times, and more than once!

Is this because the Muscle-Tendon Changing Classic was left by the Buddha, representing the power of a saint?

But if I can return, then there's no reason why the Human Emperor can't return as well.

So the Human Emperor wasn't incapable, but unwilling, or perhaps he was obstructed by others?

"Since High Antiquity times, the Incense-Smelling Cult has consistently adhered to one thing: periodically testing the remnants of the Human Emperor's power."

The first leader of the Incense-Smelling Cult, who was also a disciple of the Human Emperor, believed that the decline of the Human Emperor's power meant that the "past" Human Emperor had encountered trouble.

Yu Tunzhou snapped out of his daze, looked at An Ruyu, and said, "You came to this grotto-heaven just to test the Human Emperor's condition?"

"Yes." An Ruyu looked up at the sky and earth, paused for a rare moment in surprise, and said softly, "Judging from the current situation, the Human Emperor's condition is not optimistic."

Yu Tunzhou's lips twitched. "So, the reason you plotted against Xue Wuya was to eliminate a major threat for me?"

"Nature."

An Ruyu's face was full of seriousness and sincerity, and her bright smile reminded Yu Tunzhou of their first meeting in the Heavenly Court, when someone also sincerely declared that he was Feng Yanleng.

He chuckled, "You're kidding me."

However, now that Xue Wuya was crippled, he was too lazy to inquire about the grudges and entanglements between An Ruyu and Xue Wuya.

"Then what was the reason for Emperor Tianshun?"

"The purpose of killing Emperor Tianshun was to suppress that Peerless Imperial Lord who came from a collateral branch of the Jiang Household four thousand years ago."

An Ruyu's expression turned unusually serious. "This person has been plotting to seize the throne of the Human Emperor. We suspect that the Human Emperor's predicament is partly related to him."

"He has now seized the foundation of the Great Yan by controlling Emperor Tianshun. Only by killing Emperor Tianshun can the Human Dao Fortune back and be re-formed."

An Ruyu's statement was similar to, yet contradicted, what Huntian had said earlier.

Huntian thought that person was utterly foolish, actually daring to try and compete with the Human Emperor for the throne.

But in An Ruyu's view, that person really seemed to pose a threat to the Human Emperor?

An Ruyu added, "That emperor wants to unify the Central Plains, so after the Divine Capital stable, they will turn their attention to the Central Province and beyond, including the Northern Plains Central Province."

"Since Young Hero Guo is determined to unify the Northern Plains, he is destined to become a thorn in the side of the royal family. Given the Emperor's magnanimity, Young Hero Guo has almost no choice but to kowtow and submit."

"Your conflict has been irreconcilable from the very beginning."

Yu Tunzhou neither nodded nor shook its head.

What I heard today raises many questions.

He's even started to miss the Taicang Long Clan.

When it comes to their understanding of the Human Emperor, they are no less Incense-Smelling Cult and An Ruyu.

I wonder if they are aware of the term "independence in the past".

"And the third person?"

Yu Tunzhou asked.

"The first was Xue Wuya, the second was Emperor Tianshun, and who is the third person you want to kill?"

"Once Emperor Tianshun dies and the Ji Clan of the Great Yan Dynasty completely collapses, Young Hero Guo will naturally know," An Ruyu said with a smile.

Yu Tunzhou gave the demoness a deep look.

If it weren't for their previous collaborations, he truly wouldn't have believed a single word An Ruyu said.

I don't know if the other party really believed what he said at Floating Hill Mountain and started using him to farm reputation points.

Is this for future withdrawals?

An Ruyu suddenly smiled and said, "By the way, let me remind Young Hero Guo Young Hero Guo the Blood River Dao is already trying to win over the major Aristocratic Clan of Northern Plains. Please be aware of this."

Yu Tunzhou doesn't care at all.

Blood River Dao Sect's efforts to win over powerful Aristocratic Clan are simply a way to give them a suitable and legitimate reason to settle scores with the Northern Plains Aristocratic Clan who are involved.

They were just worried about not having enough chickens to make an example of.

Killing anyone is the same as killing someone.

An Ruyu lightly brushed a strand of hair aside and continued, "As for Xue Wuya, as long as this cave is banished, even if he obtains the Nine Netherworlds Evil..."

Even with divine assistance, it's impossible to return by the same route.

Yu Tunzhou looked at the Nine Netherworlds Rift: "Do you have any way to seal the Nine Netherworlds Rift within the cave heaven?"

An Ruyu said regretfully, "The Nine Netherworlds Rift is different from the Fallen Immortals Gate in the Eastern Wilderness. Once it is opened, no one can seal it off unless Dao Lord intervenes."

It's a pity that the Yu Tunzhou.

If the Nine Netherworlds Rift cannot be sealed, the only option is to banish the entire grotto-heaven into the outer Void.

Yu Tunzhou looked back and surveyed the entire cave, then suddenly sighed.

Even if the rifts could be sealed, there would be no way to eliminate the erosion of this world by the Nine Netherworlds Origin.

Restoring the cave to its former state is beyond their capabilities.

In this way, even if the rift can be suppressed, this cave is useless for the time being.

"Fellow Daoist, this grotto-heaven has another use!"

Huntian had been silent for a long time, suddenly spoke.

"Great Sage, tell me about it," Yu Tunzhou asked immediately.

"This place Human Emperor's Autumn Hunting Palace, and there should be a node leading to the Primordial Era, which is the past that this girl mentioned."

household."

Huntian said in a low voice, "This portal must have been hidden by the Human Emperor."

"I suspect that the powerful beings from the Nine Netherworlds invaded specifically for this portal."

Yu Tunzhou's expression turned solemn as he instantly recalled the scene from that day.

At that time, the Demon Race sent a junior to infiltrate this place, and they were willing to sacrifice themselves in order to open the gate and welcome back the Great Sage was nowhere to be found behind the gate. They almost succeeded!

And when he communicated with the Human Emperor, the portal did indeed disappear.

But new questions arose: if that was a portal to the "past," what was the situation of the powerful Demon Race behind it?

Could it be that we jumped directly from the ancient times to the present?

In response to his question, Huntian remained silent for a moment before saying, "This can only be verified by finding the portal."

Yu Tunzhou shook his head and said, "If the Human Emperor himself concealed it, we wouldn't be able to find it with our strength. Even if we did find it and were able to open it, I wouldn't dare to enter rashly."

If everything is true, then by passing through the portal, they most likely stepped into the ancient era that represents the "past".

Nobody knows what the situation is like there now.

"We don't need to risk going in, we don't even need you and me to find it," Huntian said with a glint in his eyes. "What we need are pathfinders!"

"Pathfinder—are you referring to the Nine Netherworlds Evil God?"

Yu Tunzhou reacted instantly.

"Good!"

Huntian chuckled, "Most of the evil gods in the Nine Netherworlds are brainless. Even those who are intelligent often fall into chaos in the environment of the Nine Netherworlds."

"Having lost their minds, once they discover the gateway, they will inevitably succumb to temptation."

"What we need to do is leave informants here so that we can send messages back as soon as possible."

"Eyes and ears—" Yu Tunzhou hesitated, "This place is about to be corrupted by the Nine Netherworlds, and neither Youyin nor Han Wuj iu can stay here for long."

"It's alright, just hand over that incomplete Dharma Aspect Primordial Spirit to me!" Huntian folded his wings. "After I devour him, my Primordial Spirit will be restored to the level of Immortals and Gods. At that time, I can create Primordial Spirit clones and leave them here."

Yu Tunzhou pondered for a moment and then said, "Okay."

He waved his hand to summon the Youyin Rogue Person, who then sent Xue Wuya's Primordial Spirit Xue Wuya, which Soul-Binding Chain, into the Niwan Palace.

The latter tried to struggle, but Huntian simply opened his mouth and inhaled, swallowing half of the Primordial Spirit, truly displaying some of the grandeur of the Golden-Winged Great Peng Bird.

The Youyin standing nearby trembled with fear.

Taking advantage of the brief lull in the Huntian, Yu Tunzhou looked at An Ruyu: "How do you intend to kill Emperor Tianshun? Just by storming into the imperial palace of the Divine Capital?"

An Ruyu said meaningfully, "We are not the only ones who want to kill Emperor Tianshun. Young Hero Guo can cultivate diligently in the Northern Plains. At that time, the whole world will surely be in turmoil."

"Oh?" Yu Tunzhou asked curiously, "Are you so sure?"

"Because you, Young Hero Guo, don't understand that Emperor. The people he has offended can stretch from the Central Plains to the heavens. None of the Daoist or Buddha courts still active in this world will tolerate his continued activity."

Yu Tunzhou thought to himself, "What kind of temper does this guy have? Why does he seem even more hateful Martial Ancestor?"

"By the way, do you know where the descendants of the Northern Plains Human Emperor are located?"

Yu Tunzhou asked a probing question.

An Ruyu clearly knew about the remains of the Luo Household immortal, but she seemed uninterested from beginning to end, only coming for Xue Wuya.

"Young Hero Guo, you want to ask about the immortal remains of the Luo Household, right?" An Ruyu shook her head. "There's no hope. The lineage of the Human Emperor of Northern Plains has long been extinct."

"Destroyed?"

Yu Tunzhou in astonishment.

"The Incense-Smelling Cult has been searching for the bloodline left behind by the Human Emperor, and finally discovered that the reason why that pure bloodline has not been found for so many years is because they have long since integrated into the world."

An Ruyu paused, "To put it simply, Young Hero Guo, the ordinary person you encounter while traveling in the Northern Plains might actually be a descendant of the Human Emperor."

Yu Tunzhou's mouth gaped slightly. "The method for entering the Human Emperor's Immortal Heaven has also been lost?"

He suddenly realized that if the Human Emperor had gone to the "past," then unless he left his own Immortal Heaven in this world, even if he had the method to enter, he probably wouldn't be able to find the entrance!

"No, not at all." An Ruyu's lips curled slightly. "Does Young Hero Guo really want to enter the Human Emperor's Immortal Heaven?"

"You don't want to?" Yu Tunzhou retorted.

"There will be opportunities, but not now," An Ruyu said with a smile. "Is Young Hero Guo planning to personally oversee the exile of this grotto-heaven?"

"I will come. I will stay here for some time before banishing this celestial realm into the outer Void."

It will take some time for Huntian, so Yu Tunzhou will not leave for the time being.

If something unexpected happens to the Nine Netherworlds Rift, the plan to Huntian will have to be abandoned, and the cave will be forcibly banished into the outer Void to prevent the Nine Netherworlds from invading the Northern Plains.

"Then I will stay here and keep Young Hero Guo for a few more days," An Ruyu said with a light smile.

Yu Tunzhou immediately cast a suspicious glance at him.

What is this vixen up to now?

He initially thought An Ruyu was trying to get closer to him and build a stronger relationship.

Not long after, the demoness indeed invited him to travel together, explaining that this place was the Human Emperor's Temporary Palace.

He refused on the spot.

The enchantress looked regretful and disappointed, as if he had missed some great fortuitous opportunity. Then, with her hands behind her back, she walked away lightly by herself.

They've left.

Seeing her leave so readily, yet with a look of regret on her face, Yu Tunzhou couldn't help but wonder to himself, "Could there be another fortuitous opportunity hidden here?"

After that, he secretly observed An Ruyu's movements through the central hub of the cave.

This palace is larger than imagined, built along the mountain range, stretching from the foot of the mountain to the clouds. The hall he is in now is just the main hall at the very top.

An Ruyu descended the mountain alone, her steps light and quick, moving with remarkable ease through the various palaces and pavilions.

She would hop and skip along the steps, just like in the folk game of hopscotch.

At a certain point, it would suddenly stop, tilt its head to look at the stone beast on the side of the steps, reach out to touch the broken horn, and smile.

We continued on, really just strolling around and having fun.

Yu Tunzhou sometimes frowned, sometimes relaxed, but mostly remained silent, completely unable to understand what this guy was doing.

He even saw the demoness walk into the backyard of a side hall, stop beside an ancient well, peek into the well, suddenly shout at the well opening, and then quickly pull back.

Yu Tunzhou's expression instantly turned serious.

Could it be that some evil entity is sealed within the well?

Then he saw the demoness cup her hands around her mouth, shout louder towards the bottom of the well, and then listen intently, as if waiting for a response.

But all that reached my ears was an echo.

Yu Tunzhou, who was watching closely, did not notice anything unusual.

As An Ruyu descended the mountain, the number of palaces and pavilions she passed increased.

Several halls still have murals carved on their beams and pillars, depicting the grandeur of the Human Emperor's autumn hunt. However, under the erosion of the Nine Netherworlds, the colors have long since faded, leaving only faint lines.

An Ruyu stood in front of the murals for a while, looking up at the faded paintings, her gaze unusually calm.

She walked along the wall, her fingertips tracing its surface until she stopped at a certain spot and tapped lightly with her fingertips, three long and two short taps, quite mysteriously. Yu Tunzhou thought there was some hidden compartment, but there was still no response.

After crying wolf several times in a row.

Yu Tunzhou finally felt relieved.

As expected of the Incense-Smelling Demoness!

This guy is either treasure hunting or playing the fool with the feudal lords by lighting the beacon fires!

When An Ruyu reached the foot of the mountain, she suddenly looked up at the main hall on the summit, her gaze seemingly piercing through the layers of buildings, and with a hint of cunning, she winked at Yu Tunzhou from afar.

At that moment, Yu Tunzhou realized that this demoness was just playing with him.

He withdrew his gaze and waited for Huntian to complete his plan.

The plan to ambush and kill Xue Wuya was successfully completed. As An Ruyu said, there was also a special after-sales gift from the Blood River Dao.

After finishing his work here, he went back to continue preparing for the Northern Plains Aristocratic Clan.