Chapter 2070 - The City of the Beginning

Don’t tell me that someone is trying to intercept me!?

This idea had only just occurred to Su Yi when a high-pitched cry rang out.

Su Yi whipped around and saw a figure staggering through the distant void, as if fleeing further and further into the nothingness!

It took a moment for Su Yi to see the figure clearly. He was a fiery-robed Daoist with a Dao Sword on his back. Despite his clearly human body, he had a dragon's head. A single horn sprouted from his forehead, and his eyes were blue-green. Flowing draconic whiskers sprouted from his jaw, and his face was covered in ink-black scales.

But his human body, with its Daoist robes and Dao Sword, was obviously that of a sword cultivator!

“Were you trying to stop me just now?” asked Su Yi. Su Yi could tell that the man with the dragon’s head had suffered just now. His hands were pulped and covered in golden blood!

“Strange. You’ve returned, so why won’t you recognize me?” The distant man with the dragon’s head exclaimed. “Does that mean that you didn’t recognize the Dark Skeletal God Emperor and the Glazed Illusion Hell Queen either?”

The Dark Skeletal God Emperor! That had to refer to the man in white seated on a skeletal throne. And the Glazed Illusion Hell Queen had to be that woman seated on a tripod cauldron and shrouded in a rain of light!

“That’s right,” said Su Yi. He saw no need to deny it. “I can tell that both you and them have been looking forward to my return.”

“Hahaha, we aren’t simply ‘looking forward to it.’ We’ve been longing for your return day and night!” The man with the dragon’s head threw back his head and laughed. But his laughter was sinister, and his smile was full of murderous intent!

“Might you explain in more detail?” asked Su Yi.

He really was curious, and quite surprised, too. After all, he’d only just used the Epoch Spark to open the Path of the Ancient Gods and begin shifting through time and space, but three strangers of unknown origins had appeared already, each more terrifying than the one before. Who wouldn’t have been surprised?

“Hahaha! You actually forgot everything that happened? It seems that reincarnating has caused problems with your memories! You’ve become an imbecile!” The man with the dragon’s head laughed uproariously, every word dripping with mockery.

Boom!

A moment later, a radiant rain of spacetime flowed past, wrapped around Su Yi, and carried him off.

It was faint, but he could hear the dragon-headed man’s voice emanating from afar. “When we next meet again, we’ll determine who’s superior once more. Let’s see whose Dao of the Sword is stronger! That day is already not far off!”

Su Yi rubbed his forehead. He really didn’t understand any of this. He had no idea who the man with the dragon head was, but it seemed his hatred for him ran bone deep!

Furthermore, it sounded like the man with the dragon head had once lost to him in a competition of swordsmanship.

The Dark Skeletal God Emperor, the Glazed Illusion Hell Queen, and that dragon-headed Daoist... Which of my incarnations were they enemies with? And why... have they appeared in the Path of the Ancient Gods?

Su Yi struggled to recall and came up with nothing. Even though he’d inherited Li Fuyou’s memories, he couldn’t find so much as a single lead regarding those three mysterious existences.

The Glazed Illusion Hell Queen said that the people I suppressed in the darkness have started to reawaken. It seems that she, the Dark Skeletal God Emperor, and that dragon-headed Daoist are among the opponents one of my past selves suppressed here.

The power of reincarnation has vanished for so long that it’s given them a chance to reawaken within the endless darkness.

I can say with certainty that they aren’t experts of the present day. Otherwise, there’s no way I wouldn’t be able to find any trace of them in Li Fuyou’s memories.

That means they are like the rulers of the forbidden zones, beings of the past. An unknowably long time ago, I confined them to the lost epochs of the past!

But the Path of the Ancient Gods connected the past and present. The moment I entered, they sensed me!

Su Yi couldn’t help but be solemn.

Does this mean that these unknown enemies will come looking for me as I explore the Path of the Ancient Gods?

But a moment later, Su Yi refuted the idea.

Because the Glazed Illusion God Queen said that those awakening in the darkness would rebuild themselves within the natural order of the present day. Then, their Daos would blanket the heavens, and they’d strive for a true Eternal Dao!

That meant that, at least in the short run, they wouldn’t be able to leave this endless darkness. Were they capable of that, they’d likely have entered the present day and attacked the God Domain and associated territories a long time ago!

At the same time, Su Yi recalled what the River Lord had told him.

The present era was soon to enter a turbulent, tumultuous age. One he called the Dark Days of Legend!

When the time came, space and time would descend into chaos. The entirety of the past and future would appear in the present day.

There was no doubt about it. The Dark Skeletal God Emperor and Glazed Illusion Hell Queen and the others consigned to the darkness were almost certain to appear then!

The world really is a bit different from the one my past selves remember. I’m afraid the root of all of this is my power of reincarnation...

An unknown amount of time later, rumbling filled the air, and Su Yi was swept uncontrollably forward, light as a feather.

A moment later, his feet touched an extremely firm surface, and the scenery cleared up before him.

He was in a city!

All manner of old-fashioned buildings spread out in all directions, arranged like a spider’s web. The sky was a murky gray swath of chaos, and a primordial, ancient aura hung in the air.

A clamor of voices arose nearby.

“Quick, look over there! That’s Su Yi! They say that he’s the one who opened the Path of the Ancient Gods!”

“Why did he only just show up? Wasn’t he supposed to have been the first to enter?”

“Who knows?”

Su Yi was stunned.

I arrived late?

A moment later, he understood. That dragon-headed Daoist had intercepted him as he crossed time and space. That must have caused a shift in the spacetime power, delaying his arrival.

He now found himself on a mysterious, ancient platform a thousand feet across. Numerous experts were gathered nearby. The vast majority were Great Realm cultivators, but there were gods in the mix too. Just not very many of them.

Su Yi even saw a few cultivators yet to reach the Great Realm, including Immortal Kings and Lords!

Despite his initial surprise, Su Yi quickly grasped the situation.

That’s right. The Path of the Ancient Gods places no restrictions on entrants’ cultivation bases. So long as you’re capable of reaching it, all are welcome.

As Su Yi pondered, a pleasing female voice with a unique magnetism transmitted directly into his ears. “Fellow Daoist, why have you shown up without a disguise?”

The voice was tinged with exasperation. “The guards of the City of the Beginning have been waiting for you. They’re almost certainly after the Epoch Spark!”

Su Yi froze, then caught a glimpse of an unassuming woman in plain, undyed robes out of the corner of his eye. She was mixed into the crowd and trying to get his attention.

He instantly knew that this was Luo Xuanji in disguise!

Without the slightest change in expression, he withdrew his gaze, descended the platform, and transmitted a response. “Aren’t the guards of the City of the Beginning supposed to respect its rules? They aren’t permitted to attack any outsiders, are they?”

Before he set off for the Kingdom of Lasting Light, he’d learned some basic information regarding the Path of the Ancient Gods from Xu Xingke.

For instance, he knew that everyone who entered the Path of the Ancient Gods was sent to the City of the Beginning. This was, as the name implied, the start of the Path of the Ancient Gods. Upon arriving here, outsiders could learn about the path’s various trial grounds.

Its guards and city lord all stringently followed and enforced the city’s rules, giving outsiders both guidance and protection. Doing anything disadvantageous to an outsider was a violation of the rules, and such violations were severely punished!

“If they can make you give them the Epoch Spark without resorting to violence, it won’t count as a violation of the rules,” Luo Xuanji transmitted from the crowd. “Besides, it’s been a long, long time since the Path of the Ancient Gods last opened. It’s likely changed in the interim; you can’t trust the guards at all.

“Come with me. Let’s find a place to chat,” said Luo Xuanji. With that, she turned and left the crowd and led the way ahead. “Over the past three days, the city guards have been searching for you, but they’re not the only ones. The experts of the God Domain’s various factions have taken action too.

“I’m badly injured, and here in the City of the Beginning, the natural order has suppressed my cultivation base. Any violence will likely cost me my life. It’s critical that we keep a low profile—”

She’d only just said this when her voice came to an abrupt halt mid-sentence.

A group was headed their way with fierce momentum. These were the city guards, all of them armed to the teeth and emanating terrifying auras.

Their armor emanated divine flames, and shockingly, they had a unique connection to the city's Laws. They were like the incarnation of the city’s natural order, the agents of its will!

When they saw the guards, the nearby experts’ expressions shifted, and all of them hurriedly stepped aside.

“Fellow Daoist, you have to keep a low profile. Whatever you do, don’t come into conflict with the city guards. I know they’re just guards, but don’t look down on them. They represent the will of the city lord!” warned Luo Xuanji.

She could tell that the guards were here for Su Yi!

Indeed, when they saw him from a distance, the leader of the guards, a wiry, handsome young man, waved for the other guards to stop.

Then, he took a big step forward and looked at Su Yi, his eyes flashing like cold lightning. “Are you Su Yi, the one who controls the Epoch Spark?”

Silence descended over the area. All eyes were on Su Yi.

“That’s right,” said Su Yi. “Do you have business with me?”

The handsome young man said, “We’ve been waiting for you for a long time. Come with us!”

“Where are we going?” asked Su Yi.

“You’ll know when we get there.” The young man’s attitude was firm, and he spoke with incontrovertible force. It was an order, not a request.

Su Yi’s eyebrows rose, and he said casually, “I’m not leaving until I get clear answers.”

The handsome young man’s expression darkened. “This is the City of the Beginning. Here, no matter who you are and no matter your cultivation base, you must follow the rules! None dare to defy the ironclad rules of the City of the Beginning!”

He paused, then said, “You only just arrived and don’t understand the situation yet, so I can let you off this time, but if you dare refuse again, don’t blame me for punishing you in accordance with the rules!”

He spoke with firm conviction and overflowing murderous intent!