Chapter 1328: Waiting for Six Lifetimes

The heavenly daos of Revered Ancient were reconstructed, whereupon... one eternal dao and ninety-nine additional daos allowed the path of cultivation to continue. It was a truly virtuous achievement for Revered Ancient. It meant hope for countless species. The path of cultivation had been extended!

Emperor Ancient Spirit, who had once possessed Summer Immortal personhood, brought an obsession that was like a bright lamp in the darkness that covered all species. The fog of confusion was dispelled, and the lamp lit the way to the other shore of pāramitā.

There are a few more things to take care of.

Xu Qing looked out over the lands briefly, then took a step forward. Zhou Zhengli kept pace with him.

Time passed. Three days went by. During that time, Xu Qing went to several locations. For one thing, he visited all of the species who worshiped gods. And he went to other places where evidence existed of outside influence. In the end, he extracted all the pawns, one by one.

By the time he finished with that effort, his immortal-god fusion had reached the limit, and he couldn’t maintain it anymore. On the evening of the third day, he ended the fusion at the foot of the Ghost Emperor mountain.

The god clone became separate and took in all the godhood. To some extent, his god clone... was really a clone of Eminent Desolation. Hē was made from the flesh and blood of Eminent Desolation, and also had Eminent Desolation’s godhood. Although hē was still closely tied to Xu Qing, that connection couldn’t be considered completely reliable.

Because of that, Xu Qing didn’t have hīm return to the necropolis. Instead, he sent hīm into the interior of Revered Ancient.

As the evening light shone down on his immortal body, he stood there looking up at the looming Ghost Emperor mountain. Zhou Zhengli and the others stood behind him silently.

Ahead of him on the mountain... was a person. He sat cross-legged on the summit of the mountain, his clothes a bit dirty, his expression haggard, his eyes closed as he sought enlightenment.

“Third Sib,” Xu Qing said softly.

This person was Master Seventh’s third apprentice, who was Xu Qing’s Third Elder Brother! When catastrophe struck Revered Ancient years ago, Master Seventh went into seclusion, Xu Qing left the mainland, Erniu went to Brilliant Heaven, and Second Elder Sister took charge of Seven Blood Eyes. As for Third Sib... he went to the Ghost Emperor mountain.

He had sat down cross-legged on the summit, and had meditated there for half of a sixty-year-cycle. He had hoped to use the power of his past lives to defend the people he cared about.

After all, he was the reincarnation of the Ghost Emperor! As a result, he had a deep connection to the Ghost Emperor mountain.... Master Seventh was aware of that, of course. And when Xu Qing thought back, he realized there had been clues pointing to that fact all along.

Long ago, the Ghost Emperor passed away into meditation in Emperor-Receiving Prefecture, whereupon his three spiritual souls became the spirits and his seven physical souls became fiends. As for his spirit power, it dispersed into his surroundings, providing nourishment to all living beings in Emperor-Receiving Prefecture. Obviously, his life essence still existed.

Whether it was because of Third Sib’s reincarnation or because of outside forces, he was destined to return to Emperor-Receiving Prefecture eventually. He had a rough youth, and developed a powerful animosity, but eventually one of his servants got him to Seven Blood Eyes. That was when he became the third apprentice of Master Seventh.

Of course, there was a gap between his past life and his present life. Truly returning, and truly tapping into the power of his past life, was not going to be an easy task. The three spiritual souls had not returned, and the seven physical souls weren’t cooperating. His life essence... was just life essence, nothing more.

And as a result, even after meditating on the Ghost Emperor mountain for about thirty years, Third Sib had not yet succeeded.

If Xu Qing had not returned, then when catastrophe struck Revered Ancient again, it was possible his backer, the black pagoda of the Ninth Star Ring, would have helped him to fuse with his past life. Then he would have become the black pagoda’s most powerful pawn. However, if that had happened, he would no longer have been himself.

But Xu Qing did come back, and he did draw the line of demarcation. He ended the tribulation of the ancient immortal, and the black pagoda became the only one of the four God Paragons to sever karmic connections to all pawns in Revered Ancient.

Because of that, Third Sib... became free. When Xu Qing spoke, Third Sib slowly opened his eyes.

“Fourth Sib...” he said in a hoarse voice.

Xu Qing had never been as close with his Third Sib as he had been with his Eldest Brother or Second Elder Sister. What stuck out in Xu Qing’s mind the most was the incident with the Merfolk princess back in Seven Blood Eyes. Xu Qing chased the princess all the way to Third Sib’s dharmaboat. She ran right into the gentle Third Sib’s embrace, whereupon he killed her mercilessly.[1]

It had been a big shock to Xu Qing. Because of that, his guard had gone up, and he had always done his best to avoid getting close to Third Sib.

Thinking about the past, and taking into account the present, Xu Qing couldn’t help but sigh inwardly. He took a step forward, placing him right in front of the haggard-looking Third Sib on the top of the mountain.

“Third Sib,” he said, “do you need some help fusing with your past life?”

A look of bewilderment glimmered in Third Sib’s eyes. A moment later, he shook his head. “Do you want to hear my story, Fourth Sib?”

Xu Qing nodded.

Third Sib produced a jug of alcohol, took a sip, then said, “I was born here in Emperor-Receiving Prefecture.... But back then, I didn’t know about my connection to the Ghost Emperor.

“And yet, I could always hear a faint voice calling out to me.... It was calling me to here, to this very mountain. As I grew older, the call grew stronger. And eventually, I started to get the feeling... that the mountain was actually me.

𝕗𝕣𝐞𝐞𝘄𝐞𝚋𝚗𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗹.𝚌𝕠𝚖

“When Master went into seclusion, the call grew more urgent. That’s why I came here. When both you and Eldest Brother went missing, I assumed you were trying to help Master in some way. I wanted to do the same....

“So I came here hoping to fuse with the mountain. During the process... I saw a black pagoda. The black pagoda told me that the call I’d heard all those years wasn’t from the Ghost Emperor mountain. Hē said that it was hīm. Hē was calling to me because hē wanted my soul, my flesh, my blood, and everything about me. Hē said that if I agreed, hē could keep Seven Blood Eyes safe. I agreed.

“The truth is that I wasn’t totally sure if the Ghost Emperor mountain and my present life had any connection. But I wanted to try. With the help of that black pagoda, I started to fuse with the mountain. It was a very long process. And in the end, Fourth Sib, I saw you establish that line of demarcation in the starry sky.

“I saw the black pagoda sever the connection to me, giving me my freedom.... And yet....”

Third Sib looked up at Xu Qing. “The moment the connection was severed, I found that the voice that had been calling to me from my youth... was still there! The voice wasn’t coming from the black pagoda. But I could also tell it wasn’t coming from the Ghost Emperor mountain either. The black pagoda had deceived me. The voice... is coming from that direction....”

He pointed to the north. “There’s someone waiting there for me... someone who’s been waiting for a long time....”

When Xu Qing saw Third Sib pointing to the north, his heart thumped in his chest. That was the direction of the Supreme Beginning Netherflight Pillar, as well as... the ghast hollow!

“You asked me if I want to fuse with the Ghost Emperor. Well, Fourth Sib, I don’t. I want to go there, to the source of the call... to see the person calling to me.” Third Sib looked at Xu Qing.

“Okay.” Xu Qing waved his hand, and everything rippled and blurred. An instant later... he and Third Elder Brother vanished from atop the Ghost Emperor mountain.

Astonishingly, when they reappeared, they were on the ice plains north of Emperor-Receiving Prefecture. They were hovering in the air. Snow drifted in the cold wind as the Supreme Beginning Netherflight Pillar rose in front of them. The immense pillar began to tremble, and faint magical symbols began to glow on its surface. Eventually, the entire Supreme Beginning Netherflight Pillar was glowing brightly.

However, Third Sib didn’t seem interested in the transformation to the pillar. His attention was focused on something below. Put precisely, he was looking at... the spot where the pillar connected to the ground! That was the entrance to the ghast hollow!

“All of these years, the voice calling to me was in there....”

He instinctively reached out toward the Supreme Beginning Netherflight Pillar. Whether it was because of the thirty years he had spent trying to fuse with the Ghost Emperor mountain, or because of the interference of the God Paragon, in the end, Third Sib had developed a close connection to the pillar.

Rumbling sounds echoed out from the pillar. To the shock of the cultivators in the tent city, the massive Supreme Beginning Netherflight Pillar began to slowly rise into the air. The ice plains quaked! Higher and higher the pillar rose until it emerged from the ground! Powerful winds blasted out, sending tents flying and cultivators tumbling. The local swordsages were visibly astonished, and flew up into the air to see what was happening.

As the Supreme Beginning Netherflight Pillar rose into the air, a pitch-black cave appeared. That cave... was the ghast hollow! Frigid energy pulsed out of it, as well as the sound of a woman singing.

“In past lives forlorn, always reborn, sever lovesickness and endlessly mourn....

“In a life of hesitation, in a future of frustration, who is it that waits for me in reincarnation....”

[2]

It was sad and beautiful singing that sounded like mournful weeping. It was a melody that mixed the regrets and reluctance of the past life with the confusion and loneliness of the present life. Every single word contained lovesickness and desolation, and it swirled in the cold, snowy wind like long, black hair that could never be cut, until it formed a most beautiful and disconsolate image.

It was almost possible to see into the past, to a love now covered with the dust of time. As that love crumbled in the wind of time, it left behind faint sadness lingering in the heart.

And the song continued....

Three lives’ dreams cannot memory sway, but regrets will drift in the breeze unfailing.

Four lifetimes’ pain stings, obsession swirled, the Bridge of Helplessness is soaked by wailing.

Five lifetimes’ of waiting, destiny gone, only this cave shows my love’s unveiling.

Six lifetimes’ lone cry, the old dream fades and the beauty of youth is unavailing....

1. The Merfolk incident was in

chapter 98

. Back then, we knew Third Sib as Third Highness. ☜

2. This song first appeared in

chapter 364

. It was repeated in a few subsequent chapters, notably

676

and

956

. ☜