Chapter 1351: Looking to the Past from the Present

Ye Guan glanced at the woman with a longsword. She was actually pretty beautiful. She was tall and slender with sharp brows and bright eyes. She appeared elegant, but her aura was oppressive. Anyone standing within three meters of her could feel her oppressive aura.

Retracting his gaze, Ye Guan took the broken sword from Diyi Jingzhao's hands.

After examining it briefly, he turned to her with a smile. "This is a great deal."

"A great deal?"

Diyi Jingzhao was slightly surprised. She looked at the broken sword again. It did appear to be extraordinary.

"Yeah." Ye Guan chuckled and said, "Let's go."

With that, he turned and walked away.

Diyi Jingzhao cast a calm glance at the woman with a longsword.

The woman watched them leave with her eyes as cold as ice.

Just then, a swordsman approached her and said, "Senior Yue, that woman is no ordinary person. I can't even sense her presence. And we're in the Diyi Clan's territory, so you have to be careful."

The woman's gaze remained fixed on Ye Guan's departing figure, and her expression grew even colder. The sword on her back trembled slightly as if responding to her emotions.

Moments later, she turned to the man beside her and spat just two words.

"Call reinforcements."

***

Ye Guan and Diyi Jingzhao arrived on the tenth floor, which turned out to be a dining area. However, instead of serving meals, it only provided ingredients. Diners had to cook for themselves.

This piqued Ye Guan's curiosity.

Diyi Jingzhao explained that many cultivators can survive without food, but some simply enjoy eating. The tenth floor catered to those who often ate for pleasure instead of out of necessity.

Ye Guan immediately understood. After all, he was the same. He stepped into the kitchen, where an abundance of ingredients was laid out, making cooking convenient for anyone.

Not far away, Diyi Jingzhao watched him quietly.

Who could imagine that the man standing in the kitchen busy preparing a meal was actually a Supreme Emperor? After a moment, she turned to look out the window.

The sky was a brilliant blue and seemed to stretch endlessly. Her thoughts drifted far away.

Before long, Ye Guan finished cooking and brought out five dishes. Setting them on the table, he smiled and said, "Come, let's eat."

Diyi Jingzhao glanced at him but didn't move.

Ye Guan picked up a piece of meat and took a bite. Then, gazing out the window, he noticed how vast Diyi City truly was. From this vantage point, he couldn't even see its end.

Retracting his gaze, he picked up a piece of sweet and sour ribs and said, "You're a strong woman."

Diyi Jingzhao looked at him without responding.

Ye Guan continued, "And you're also incredibly proud. Your strength surpasses most who are in the Half-Step Beyond Dao Realm. Among all the geniuses I've met, only a few people can compare to you.

"With such talent, your ambitions must be sky-high, but last night, you..."

Diyi Jingzhao's expression turned slightly unnatural upon hearing that.

Ye Guan didn't stop. "I suppose you're in a hurry to become a Supreme Emperor. And there are only two reasons for that—you have an insatiable thirst for power, or your clan is... in danger."

Although Diyi Jingzhao's face remained calm, waves rippled in her heart.

Ye Guan looked at her seriously. "Regardless, you're forcing yourself. Cultivators like us must guard our hearts. Once cracks appear in our heart, it will shatter when we face our tribulations.

"The moment an inner demon arises, your Dao Heart will crumble, and you'll be doomed once it bares its fangs at you."

Diyi Jingzhao clenched her fists slightly and lowered her gaze.

Ye Guan suddenly smiled. "Come on, eat something. I promise my cooking's not bad."

Diyi Jingzhao glanced at him but still didn't pick up her chopsticks. Instead, she asked, "Earlier, you told Xiao Hong that some things are more important than cultivating. Were you referring to your friends and brothers?"

Clearly, she had done some research on him.

Ye Guan nodded. "Yes."

"And you gave up being a Supreme Emperor for them?" she asked.

Ye Guan nodded again.

Diyi Jingzhao stared at him, as if trying to see through him. "Do you have any idea how difficult it is to reach the Supreme Emperor Realm? Once you do, you'll stand above all. Even during the Era of Emperors, you'll still reign supreme in the Ten Desolate Universe."

Ye Guan picked up a piece of vegetable and chewed it before saying, "And do you know... that my brothers died because of me?"

He looked directly into Diyi Jingzhao's beautiful eyes and smiled. "People should live with a conscience, don't you think so?"

Diyi Jingzhao didn't reply, but something in her heart stirred.

A Supreme Emperor...

What kind of glory will that status bring?

If I were in his place, would I be able to do the same?

Diyi Jingzhao shook her head slightly, unwilling to dwell on such troublesome thoughts. Picking up her chopsticks, she took a piece of meat and tasted it. After chewing for a moment, she glanced at Ye Guan.

Ye Guan smiled. "Well?"

Diyi Jingzhao said nothing and continued eating.

Ye Guan suddenly asked, "Jingzhao, I wanted to ask you something."

Jingzhao...

Diyi Jingzhao's brows knitted slightly upon hearing that. Aside from her mother, no one had ever called her that.

Noticing her reaction, Ye Guan chuckled. "Apologies, Miss Jingzhao. It just slipped out naturally."

Adding "Miss" to the name made it feel much more distant, but Diyi Jingzhao said nothing and simply continued eating.

Ye Guan pressed on. "Back in your garden, I saw a tree. Did you plant it?"

Diyi Jingzhao nodded.

Ye Guan was intrigued. "Where did you get it?"

Diyi Jingzhao glanced at him and replied, "It was originally stored in my clan's treasure vault, left behind by our founding ancestor. I noticed it one day and thought it was special, so I planted it. But no matter what I do, it won't grow."

Ye Guan asked, "Do you know where your ancestor found it?"

Diyi Jingzhao replied, "According to our records, it came from the Suiming Ruins."

Ye Guan frowned. "Suiming Ruins?"

"It's an ancient one. This was actually a secret of my Diyi Clan, so... don't go spreading it around."

Ye Guan nodded. "Understood."

Diyi Jingzhao took another bite of the sweet and sour ribs before saying, "Ancient ruins are remnants from an era before any recorded history. The oldest known historical period dates back six billion years.

"Initially, people believed that it was the beginning of civilization, but the discovery of prehistoric ruins revealed an even older, unknown period of history. Unfortunately, we know almost nothing about it."

Ye Guan mused, "So that tree might be from that lost period of history?"

Diyi Jingzhao nodded slightly.

After a moment of thought, Ye Guan asked, "I heard from your sister that your clan was the first to produce a Supreme Emperor. Was it your founding ancestor?"

"That's right." Diyi Jingzhao met his gaze. "You've guessed correctly. My ancestor was the first Supreme Emperor of this known universe."

Ye Guan asked, "Did it have anything to do with the Suiming Ruins?"

Diyi Jingzhao shook her head. "No one knows. Our ancestor never revealed the details."

"Shouldn't someone at your level be able to reverse time and investigate that ancient civilization?" asked Ye Guan. He thought of the Multiverse Emperor who once defied the flow of time. He actually missed that guy, and he couldn't help but wonder what he was up to now.

Diyi Jingzhao remained silent and simply picked up another piece of meat.

Ye Guan noticed that she liked the sweet and sour ribs.

"How did you reach the Supreme Emperor realm?" Diyi Jingzhao asked.

Ye Guan blinked in surprise. "Why do you ask?"

"I'm just curious because it's clear that you know so little about the world," Diyi Jingzhao replied, "Reversing the flow of time... don't get me wrong, it's not something only I can do. Anyone above the True Saint Realm can do it.

"However, it all depends on the place. For instance, in a low-tier universe, a True Saint can easily reverse the flow of time, seeing the past from the present.

"How? Because their power far exceeds the limit of that low-tier universe, and their Dao overwhelms the temporal laws of that universe..."

Diyi Jingzhao paused for a moment, then added, "To put it simply, Time Rivers differ in strength, too. In low-tier universes, some casually call themselves 'Sovereigns' or 'Gods.'

"Compared to the Supreme Emperors of this known universe, they're practically a joke."

"It's like comparing the richest man in a village to the richest man in a country. The two of them are the richest, but they're actually worlds apart, aren't they?"

"Exactly. The vast expanse is boundless, and civilizations are as numerous as the stars. Each civilization has its own cultivation system. Some experts even carve their own path, creating brand-new cultivation systems for themselves..."

Diyi Jingzhao picked up a piece of sweet and sour ribs and popped it into her mouth.

Ye Guan understood what she meant. The ability to reverse time was dependent on the location. He thought for a moment and asked, "Could a Supreme Emperor reverse time all the way to the ancient era?"

Diyi Jingzhao nodded. "They could."

Ye Guan was about to ask another question when Diyi Jingzhao added, "But they wouldn't dare."

Ye Guan was puzzled. "Why?"

"Because the Time River of this known universe is immense. And within it exists a very unique law. Anyone who tries to reverse time will exhaust their own lifespan, even Supreme Emperors.

"The further they go in reverse, the bigger the price they have to pay. Normally, a Supreme Emperor can live for about three billion years, which means they could only reverse time for up to three billion years, unless they break the temporal laws of this known universe."

Ye Guan frowned, surprised by this limitation. "Can't they break the laws by force? They're Supreme Emperors, after all."

Diyi Jingzhao replied, "They could, but they wouldn't, and they shouldn't."

Ye Guan placed a piece of ribs into her bowl. "Tell me more."

Diyi Jingzhao glanced at him and explained, "The reason they wouldn't dare is that the known lifespan of the Time River here is six hundred billion years. Time itself is sentient.

"If a Supreme Emperor tries to do something like that, they'll trigger a backlash from a six-hundred-billion-year-old Dao of Time. Even a Supreme Emperor will struggle to withstand that.

Secondly, if they forcefully break the flow of time, it will destabilize this known universe. One wrong move, and billions of lives could be wiped out in an instant. Unless the Supreme Emperor has a bad personality, they won't be that reckless."

Ye Guan nodded slowly, "I see."

Without thinking about it, Diyi Jingzhao picked up the sweet and sour ribs that Ye Guan had placed into her bowl and ate them.

When she realized that it was from him, her face flushed slightly, and she glanced at him. Seeing that Ye Guan was lost in thought and wasn't paying attention to her, she relaxed a bit and continued eating, though she still felt a little awkward inside.

Just then, she sensed something and looked outside with a frown.

Ye Guan asked, "What is it?"

Diyi Jingzhao calmly replied, "There are a few hundred swordsmen outside, and they're probably here for you."