Chapter 2040 - The Tower of Ancient Evils

The River Lord.

In mundane nations, people used this title to refer to all manner of river-dwelling yao and monsters. They even built shrines in their honor.

But in the River of Epochs, the title “River Lord” referred to a specific, highly mysterious old-timer. The title was his and his alone.

The River Lord’s mysteriousness lay in his power as the “River God” of the River of Epochs. He spent his life overseeing its alternations.

No one knew just how strong he really was. On the contrary, the vast majority of people, even gods, didn’t even know that he existed!

It was readily apparent how mysterious the old man was.

When Li Fuyou explored the River of Epochs, he encountered the River Lord just once.

At the time, the old man was squatted in an alleyway, lewdly ogling the passing women. From time to time, he’d comment on them.

“Quite the child-bearing hips on that one.

“That one’s quite powerfully built. Looks energetic...”

And as he spoke, he smacked his lips and gulped. He couldn’t have looked any more perverted.

But when he saw Li Fuyou, he seized him by the sleeve and cried out in incoherent excitement. Nothing he said made any sense.

Li Fuyou only understood bits and pieces of it, like “The will of the heavens needs reincarnation. I’ve finally waited long enough for you to appear!" and “I thought the world was marching steadily toward its end, but now that you’re here, it’s a completely different story! Do you have any idea how painful waiting for you has been?”

The River Lord’s lascivious, fanatical demeanor left a deep impression on Li Fuyou, and not a good one, either. He sent the dirty old man flying with a kick.

It was only later that Li Fuyou realized that the old man he’d kicked was the most mysterious, legendary figure in the entire River of Epochs, and that the old man knew the River of Epochs like the back of his hand.

This was especially striking given that despite the passage of countless years, the River of Epochs remained shrouded in mystery. The general populace only knew the tip of the iceberg!

Unfortunately, when the River Lord learned that Li Fuyou hadn’t actually mastered reincarnation, he was overcome with incomparable disappointment. In the end, he told Li Fuyou to return to the River of Epochs once he’d mastered reincarnation and that he’d share enormous secrets with him then.

“That old codger is still alive?” Su Yi asked.

“He cannot possibly die,” said Xu Xingke. “That is, unless the River of Epochs dries up completely.”

“And where is he now?” Now that he’d fused with Li Fuyou’s Dao Imprint, Su Yi naturally wanted to meet with the River Lord. If everything was as he expected, Xu Xingke had come looking for him at the River Lord’s behest.

“He went to a mysterious place unknown to even me. He’s been gone for thirteen thousand years now, but not long ago, he sent a message out of nowhere. He told me you’d returned to the River of Epochs, and he instructed me to find you,” said Xu Xingke. “He’ll return within half a year at most.”

Su Yi rubbed his forehead. “Very well, I can wait.”

“Come with me. There’s a place I must bring you.”

“Where?”

“In your past life, the River Lord wanted to bring you to the Tower of Ancient Evils, but you hadn’t yet mastered the power of reincarnation, so he couldn’t do so,” said Xu Xingke. “But now, the time is ripe.”

“Very well!” said Su Yi, and the two of them promptly set off.

Not long after they left, a fiery, delicate figure appeared out of thin air. Her snow-white hair danced in the wind, and she was sultry, slender, and beautiful. As her eyes took in her surroundings, she inadvertently revealed contempt for all of creation.

𝗳𝚛𝚎𝚎𝘄𝕖𝕓𝕟𝕠𝚟𝚎𝕝.𝗰𝕠𝐦

Luo Xuanji!

She raised her hand and beckoned. Nie Mo’s head rose from the river and landed in her hand.

“What a quick saber. To think that wolf cub the River Lord took in would grow so strong,” sighed Luo Xuanji.

Of course she knew of the River Lord. How could she not? She’d long since guessed Xu Xingke’s roots, too.

“I just knew that the old-timers in the other forbidden zones wouldn’t be able to remain seated after reincarnation appeared. If all goes as I expect, it won’t be long before the River Lord returns, too.

“I just don’t know how the God Domain will respond. Perhaps... They anticipated these developments in the River of Epochs a long time ago.

“Fortunately, I broke my fetters a little early. I’ll be able to see just what kind of wind and waves will arise before the show begins in earnest.”

As she pondered, Luo Xuanji tossed the head away and floated off.

......

A day later.

Countless long, narrow spacetime rifts hung over a cold, dark stretch of river. Even though they hovered there in complete stillness, the sight was oppressive and imposing.

Su Yi gestured to the treasure tower standing in the distance. “That's the Tower of Ancient Evils?”

There was no gauging just how tall it was, as only a portion of it was visible above the water’s surface. It was like a mountain rising into the heavens, and the top of the tower was surrounded by countless spacetime rifts.

“That’s right.” Xu Xingke nodded. “Only the River Lord knows the tower’s origins. I just know that a prison stands beneath it, and that imprisons terrifying divine wraiths of long-lost eras. There’s no killing them; not even an Epoch Tribulation can destroy them. If not for this treasure tower, these ancient wraiths would have brought ruin to the world a long time ago.”

“Divine wraiths of long-lost eras?” Su Yi was stunned. The title meant little to him.

“The River of Epochs connects the past, the present, and the future,” said Xu Xingke. “It consists of the alternations of the epochs, and the ‘water’ of the river is actually the flowing current of time. The ‘long-lost eras’ the divine wraiths hail from are, in fact, long-vanished epoch civilizations.

“The lost epochs vanished long ago, disappearing into nothingness. They are not of the present era, and can exist only in the past. Only the epoch civilizations now spread across the River of Epochs are of the present day.

“When an epoch civilization flourishes, it welcomes its most glorious age, and gives rise to opportunities to achieve divinity.

“But when it wanes and its Epoch Tribulation nears, an epoch will gradually fade away before being destroyed completely. Then, a new epoch will be born to take its place.

“Epochs are born, then grow and flourish, only to face away. This is the fate of an epoch civilization, much like the birth, aging, and death of mortal men.

“There are two unmistakable turning points in an epoch’s development. When opportunities to achieve divinity appear, that means an epoch is at its strongest.

“Then, when an Epoch Tribulation arises, it means a shift from prosperity to waning and the start of an epoch’s gradual but inevitable decay.”

Here, Xu Xingke paused before continuing, “Most epochs of the present day have already started to wane. When they fade away, they’ll belong completely to the past.

“This is the line between the past and present. It isn’t an unchanging demarcation. As the River of Epochs shifts and the epochs alternate, it too transforms with every moment.”

“This is an incomparably slow, drawn-out process. Compared to the birth and destruction of an epoch, ordinary living beings seem utterly paltry and insignificant.”

Su Yi instantly understood.

The ancient divine wraiths imprisoned within the Tower of Ancient Evils had survived the destruction of their long-lost epochs.

That alone was an enormous feat. From this, it was easy to imagine how terrifying the ancient divine wraiths were!

At the same time, it was obvious how mysterious and extraordinary the Tower of Ancient Evils was.

“The Immortal Realm has only just given rise to opportunities to achieve divinity,” said Su Yi. “Based on the divisions of ‘past, present, and future,’ doesn’t that mean it's a peak epoch of the present?”

Xu Xingke nodded. “After something peaks, it’ll inevitably decline. That means that the Immortal Realm will now slowly but surely march toward its end. When its Epoch Tribulation descends, the Immortal Realm will vanish completely.”

There were numerous epochs of the present day, but most had already begun their decline, while the Immortal Realm had only just invited its era of peak prosperity!

It too would eventually decline and fade away, but that would take an extremely long time.

“There really aren’t any eternal epoch civilizations?” asked Su Yi.

“There is one, actually,” said Xu Xingke, an uncharacteristic strange glint in his typically cold, indifferent gaze. “The Spirit Martial Epoch! An unparalleled existence is protecting it, so although it underwent its Epoch Tribulation a long time ago, it hasn’t disappeared. Instead, that unparalleled existence hid it from this world!

“In doing so, he broke the ironclad rule of the alternation of the epochs, something not even gods and Buddhas can hope to achieve!”

As he said this, his gaze grew a little heated.

Su Yi’s heart shook as he recalled a certain someone——

Demon God Lin!

The spearwoman’s father!

Back in the Immortal Realm, Su Yi learned forbidden secrets of the Spirit Martial Epoch, and in the Spacetime Boundary Marker, he encountered an imprint of Demon God Lin’s will. The two of them had met across time and space.

It was then that Su Yi received the imprint of the complete power of reincarnation.

Now, when he heard Xu Xingke speak of that “unparalleled existence,” Su Yi instantly knew he was speaking of Demon God Lin of the Spirit Martial Epoch!

But then, it makes sense, and if Demon God Lin could do it, I’ll naturally be able to do it too one day. There’s no need for me to fear the Immortal Realm declining and disappearing,

Su Yi thought to himself.

“The River Lord invited you here because there’s something you need on the highest floor of the Tower of Ancient Evils. He’s looked over the tower for countless years, just waiting for someone who’d mastered reincarnation to arrive,” said Xu Xingke. “But before you go in, I must warn you that the portion of the tower that rises above the river is divided into nine stories. Each contains an ancient divine wraith that not even a god could kill. Only the power of reincarnation can truly end them.

“In life, each of the ancient wraiths was an extraordinary expert of the Divine Dao. Even after becoming wraiths, they can threaten Creation Realm Lesser Gods’ lives.”

Su Yi’s expression was suddenly strange. “Is this a trial?”

“According to the River Lord, this is a test of your mastery over reincarnation. If you can’t reach the ninth floor, you won’t be able to acquire the treasure there,” said Xu Xingke. “But you must be careful. Within the Tower of Ancient Evils, you can only fight directly with your cultivation base. You cannot use any external power whatsoever.

“I’ll stay here and watch over the tower until you return. No matter what happens outside, you just need to focus on overcoming your own trials.”

Su Yi’s gaze focused. “Don’t tell me something will happen after I enter the tower?”