Chapter 164: The Disappeared Crowd, Chen Changsheng Leaves the Nether Forest
Chapter 164 – The Disappeared Crowd, Chen Changsheng Leaves the Nether Forest
At White Marsh’s words, Chen Changsheng replied with absolute candor.
“I am not bored.”
“I think staying here is quite pleasant. Why should we go out?”
Hearing this, White Marsh’s snout twitched even more violently.
“No, even I—a divine beast unburdened by mortal attachments—do not feel qualified to utter such nonsense. What gives you the right?”
“You have weathered so much bloodshed in the outside world. Has your Dao heart truly remained untouched by it all?”
“Why should it be affected? As long as one’s state of mind remains pristine, all of creation is inherently beautiful.”
“As the ancient verse goes: Spring boasts a hundred flowers, autumn the moon. Summer carries cool breezes, winter the snow. When idle worries do not cloud the mind, every season is a blessed time in the mortal realm.”
“As long as you do not forge your own shackles, where in this mortal coil is not a paradise?”
Faced with Chen Changsheng’s philosophical indifference, White Marsh fell into a heavy silence.
“They are not like you. Rotting away from old age is a fate they cannot evade.”
“Calculate it yourself. Exactly how long have you been buried in this place?”
At those words, the faint smile resting on Chen Changsheng’s face slowly faded into a profound calmness.
Since stepping foot into the Nether Forest, he had fought for 180 years, slumbered for 640, and chopped wood for 1,280.
Then came another deep sleep of 1,280 years, followed by 750 years of cultivating the forest’s ecosystem.
In total, he had been trapped here for exactly 4,130 years.
If they hadn’t sealed their waning vitality in Longevity Blood Stones, certain old acquaintances of his would likely be nearing the bitter end of their lifespans by now.
Realizing the weight of the epochs passed, Chen Changsheng slowly stood up.
“You make a fair point. I have indeed lingered here for a long time. It is time to wander the outside world once more.”
With a calm stride, Chen Changsheng approached the edge of the central lake.
“As long as you continue to evolve along your current trajectory, the heavenly laws of this environment will only perfect themselves, eventually forming a complete, self-sustaining world.”
“However, secular matters call me away. I am afraid I cannot remain to help you guide that process.”
“When the tides of karma allow it, I will return to visit you.”
Upon hearing his farewell, a cluster of pale roots breached the soil, gently winding around Chen Changsheng’s wrist as if unwilling to let him leave.
Seeing the ancient consciousness act like a reluctant child, Chen Changsheng smiled warmly. “I know you hate to part, but there is no banquet under the heavens that does not eventually end.”
“Our meeting was woven by fate, and so too is our parting.”
“Besides, I still owe you a heavy promise. That alone guarantees we shall meet again.”
Comforted by his words, the roots entwining his right hand slowly receded. A single, vibrant green leaf detached from the luminescent sapling and drifted down, resting lightly in his palm.
‘This leaf shall guide you through the void to find me. Should you find the time, remember to come home,’ the entity conveyed.
Sensing the Divine Sense brushing against his mind, Chen Changsheng grinned.
“It is a promise!”
“Ah, before I go. I have a mortal friend who suffered a grave injury. His foundation is shattered, much like this foolish hound’s was.”
“But he is just a mortal lacking any cultivation base. Do you possess a method to pull him back from the brink?”
The moment the words left his lips, the ambient Qi surged. Two drops of achingly pure, crystalline liquid condensed from the air above the sapling.
Crack!
A short branch snapped off its own accord, swiftly hollowing out and weaving its fibers into a small wooden vial.
The suspended drops fell perfectly into the wooden vial, which then floated gently into Chen Changsheng’s waiting hand.
‘This is the Essence of All Things. One drop to tether your friend’s soul to the living, and the other to serve as your own life-saving trump card.’
‘Furthermore, this vial is forged from my core timber. Any seed or spirit herb placed within will maintain its primordial vitality forever.’
‘When the day comes for your return, you must bring me a grand harvest of seeds.’
“Consider it done. I will scour the earth to bring you a specimen of every seed this world has to offer.”
With their final farewells concluded, a shimmering, circular gate of light tore open the fabric of space before Chen Changsheng.
Gazing into the spatial rift, Chen Changsheng stepped through without a shred of hesitation.
Little Black, who had been agonizing over their departure for decades, launched himself through the portal faster than a bolt of heavenly tribulation lightning.
……
Thud!
Little Black crashed heavily face-first into a mound of loose dirt, while Chen Changsheng descended light as a feather, his boots touching the earth soundlessly.
Scrambling to his paws, Little Black vigorously shook the dirt from his pristine coat and looked around the unfamiliar wilderness with wild excitement.
“Chen Changsheng, where in the world are we?!”
“Are we finally free?!”
Sweeping his gaze over the desolate mountains, Chen Changsheng replied mildly, “We have indeed stepped out of the Nether Forest. As for our current coordinates… I have no idea.”
“Let us find a local to interrogate.”
“That little brat Wu Li actually dared to spy on my sleeping form and laugh at my expense.”
“Once we return to the sect, I will discipline him properly!”
Flicking his sleeves, Chen Changsheng picked a random direction and took to the skies, with Little Black trailing eagerly beside him.
……
“This… this domain is Black Wind Mountain!”
A miserable wolf demon lay plastered into the dirt, firmly pinned beneath White Marsh’s heavy paw.
Faced with the crushing suppression of a true divine beast, the lowly demon didn’t even harbor the courage to summon its Qi, let alone resist.
“Black Wind Mountain? Never heard of such a backwater speck of dirt!”
Unfamiliar with the geography, White Marsh turned an expectant gaze toward Chen Changsheng.
After all, the Eternal Undertaker’s mind was an absolute repository of ancient topography.
“Allow me to recall. Black Wind Mountain… it should be a barren ridge bordering the Western Continent.”
“If my memory serves me right, we are currently over 2,000,000 miles away from the Purple Mansion Holy Land.”
“So we ended up in the Western Continent. No wonder we’ve flown for half a day without spotting a single human settlement,” White Marsh grumbled.
With a disdainful snort, White Marsh forcefully kicked the wolf demon aside.
“You may scram. Swallow every detail of what you saw today. If a single word leaks, I will personally come back to claim your worthless hide!”
“S-Senior, please be at ease! This lowly one’s lips are sealed tighter than a tomb!”
Terrified by the divine beast’s killing intent, the wolf demon frantically kowtowed and swore venomous Dao oaths.
Amused by the display, Chen Changsheng chuckled softly. He casually tossed a fragrant, glowing spirit herb to the bruised wolf before turning to leave with White Marsh.
Catching the priceless herb in its trembling paws, the wolf demon stared blankly at the receding backs of the man and the beast.
“Why would those two Seniors be looking for the Purple Mansion Holy Land?” the demon muttered in bewilderment.
“Didn’t the Purple Mansion Holy Land achieve Ascension 800 years ago?”
But the profound mysteries of the heavens did not occupy the low-level demon’s thoughts for long. Such cosmic matters were far beyond its pay grade.
What truly mattered was the pulsating, thousand-year spirit herb resting in its claws.
It was a supreme treasure that a lowly beast like him wouldn’t normally encounter in ten lifetimes!
“Mother! I met an Immortal!”
Clutching the spiritual medicine to its chest, the wolf demon wept tears of joy as it sprinted madly toward its den.
……
The Middle Heavens.
Standing amidst the chilling silence of a grand, empty hall, Chen Changsheng’s brows locked in a deep frown.
Gone.
They were all gone.
The three great Holy Lands that governed the Middle Heavens had vanished without a trace!
During his flight from the Western Continent back to the central domain, Chen Changsheng had gradually noticed an unsettling wrongness in the atmosphere.
He had long since crossed the historical borders of the Purple Mansion Holy Land, yet he had not detected the aura of a single disciple.
Driven by an ominous feeling, he had descended into a sprawling mortal city to gather intelligence.
The truth he uncovered was something he found utterly impossible to digest.
800 years ago, the Desolate Heavenly Emperor Wu Li had forcibly uprooted the three great Holy Lands of the Middle Heavens and led them into Ascension.
“Tsk, tsk!”
“The Desolate Heavenly Emperor. Now that is a title dripping with absolute tyranny.”
“I have to say, it rolls off the tongue far better than ‘Bearer of the Heaven’s Mandate’.”
“Chen Changsheng, I must admit, your disciple is leagues more magnificent than you are.”
As he lazily inspected the hollowed-out architecture of the abandoned palace, White Marsh continuously showered Wu Li’s legacy with praise.
Noticing Chen Changsheng’s face remained cast in dark shadows, White Marsh paused, tilting his majestic head in confusion. “Wait, what are you agonizing over?”
“Your disciple shattered the void and conquered the heavens. Shouldn’t you be bursting with pride?”
At that, Chen Changsheng turned slowly, his eyes devoid of their usual sardonic light. “Wu Li is not a man who easily severs his earthly tethers.”
“This mortal soil houses too much of his grief and memories. Under normal circumstances, he would never abandon it.”
“Yet he left. And he did not leave alone; he ripped the foundations of the world up by the roots to take everyone with him.”
“That singular fact proves that the so-called Ascension 800 years ago was deeply flawed. He must have encountered an insurmountable terror.”
Hearing the chilling logic in Chen Changsheng’s voice, White Marsh sobered instantly.
“Surely you are overthinking it? If it was a forced retreat, why did the Kunlun Holy Land ascend with them?”
“That is a piece of the puzzle I cannot yet place. But have you noticed the glaring omission in the world’s history?”
“Ever since Wu Li banished the Sacred Ruins from the Middle Heavens, all traces of it vanished from the mortal realm.”
“Suppose the Sacred Ruins went into hiding out of sheer terror of Wu Li’s might. Then how do you account for the Desolate Ancient Forbidden Land? Why has that primordial nightmare disappeared as well?”
As the implications settled, White Marsh’s fur stood on end. The world was far too quiet.
“Then… what is your next move?”
“We hunt them down.”
“Whether they reign as gods or bleed as corpses, I must see it with my own eyes.”