Chapter 1429: The Ancestral Civilization

Ye Guan carried Sui Gujin on his back as he walked toward the ancient bronze palace. Fearing that he would attract the attention of the mysterious expert, he dared not use his power.

At this moment, Ye Guan was feeling tormented.

𝐟𝐫𝕖𝗲𝘄𝚎𝗯𝕟𝐨𝕧𝐞𝚕.𝕔𝕠𝐦

Sui Gujin was incredibly soft, as if she were boneless. Carrying her on his back meant he could clearly feel the warmth and suppleness pressing against him, and he also caught whiffs of her faint fragrance.

After walking for a while, Ye Guan suddenly put her down. "Lady Sui, you should walk on your own."

Sui Gujin looked at him, and her gaze seemed to be able to see right through him. "You're a swordsman. A swordsman should have a heart as still as water. But right now, your mind is filled with distractions. How do you even cultivate your sword?"

Ye Guan coldly replied, "This has nothing to do with me. It's your fault."

Sui Gujin frowned slightly.

Ye Guan bluntly added, "Lady Sui, you're too beautiful. I'm finding it hard to control myself when I'm carrying you like this."

Sui Gujin was momentarily stunned.

Ye Guan found himself speechless.

Who made the rule that swordsmen had to be all prim and proper? Sword cultivation is about cultivating the heart, not about abstinence. If cultivating the sword required celibacy, that'd be absurd.

Men only call themselves gentlemen under one condition—when they were faced with an unattractive woman.

Sui Gujin stared at him without speaking.

Ye Guan remained calm. There was no need to play coy with this woman. Even if he tried to do so, it wouldn't work, so why not be honest?

After a brief standoff, Sui Gujin finally said, "Keep carrying me."

Ye Guan fell silent.

Sui Gujin said indifferently, "Think whatever you like. It won't change anything."

With that, she walked behind Ye Guan and climbed back onto his back.

Ye Guan understood that she didn't want to waste time, so he didn't say anything and carried her forward.

Sui Gujin suddenly asked, "I'm just curious. You're a swordsman, and at your level, there are very few like you in the world. How come you still harbor such thoughts?"

Ye Guan replied, "I'm a man. A normal man."

"From my perspective, someone at your level should have

only

the Dao in their heart."

"If I were to meet an unattractive woman, my heart would contain only the Dao. But if I ended up meeting a beautiful one, then I'd be a normal man."

Hearing Ye Guan's words, which were essentially a roundabout compliment, Sui Gujin glanced at him and said, "At least you're honest."

Ye Guan chuckled. "If you were someone else, I'd try to dodge the question. But with you, there's no point in lying. I can't fool you even if I try."

Sui Gujin said nothing.

Ye Guan suddenly asked, "Lady Sui, can I ask you a question?"

"I can't promise an answer."

"Lady Sui, isn't it exhausting being so smart?"

"You're smart, too. Is it exhausting?"

Ye Guan shook his head. "I'm only a bit clever. I'm nowhere near the level of you or the Great Daoist Brush Master."

Sui Gujin stared at him without responding.

Ye Guan was self-aware. His mind was sharp enough to deal with Master Pagoda, but when it came to grand strategists who specialized in long-term planning, he couldn't be compared to them.

"Mu Shuo told me about the scroll you gave her... Lady Sui, you are truly impressive. Especially what you said about how my Order has to be the Order of all living beings... that really opened my eyes."

He had to admit that he had never really thought about it in that direction.

He had always considered establishing Order himself; he had never thought about mobilizing all beings to build it together. If his Order wasn't just his goal but also the goal of all living beings... how terrifying would his Order become?

He was truly looking forward to seeing that.

Sui Gujin calmly said, "It's nothing impressive."

"No, no, no." Ye Guan shook his head. "I think it's impressive. I'm used to fighting alone, so I never truly mobilized the beings of the Guanxuan Universe. But now, things are different. I will rally them all. The Order of All Beings... an order that all beings would wish to establish... Just thinking about it is thrilling!"

Sui Gujin remained silent.

Ye Guan sighed. "

Ah,

if only I had met you sooner."

Sui Gujin still didn't speak.

Ye Guan smiled. "You don't seem very interested in this kind of Order, do you?"

"No," replied Sui Gujin.

Ye Guan nodded. "I understand."

The Suiming Civilization was already one of the most advanced civilizations in the observable universe. Its system and Order were certainly much better than the Guanxuan Universe's.

Sui Gujin suddenly said, "You surprised me a little."

Ye Guan curiously asked, "How so?"

"Nothing. You just seem very naive, which is surprising."

Ye Guan was dumbfounded.

Sui Gujin added, "I don't mean it as an insult."

Ye Guan nodded. "I know."

The two stopped talking.

Ye Guan quickened his pace while carrying Sui Gujin. Although the sensation of her body pressing against him was quite enjoyable, he did not dwell on it. Before long, they arrived in front of the bronze palace.

The man with a spear was still kneeling.

Ye Guan looked at the man with a solemn face. He was the attacker earlier.

Sui Gujin also frowned as she observed the man.

Ye Guan gently set Sui Gujin down and slowly approached the man. Just then, the man stood up and turned to face Ye Guan and Sui Gujin.

Ye Guan halted, silently staying on guard.

The man didn't attack. He first looked at Sui Gujin, a trace of shock in his eyes, and then he turned to Ye Guan, showing equal astonishment.

Seeing that the man hadn't attacked them right away, Ye Guan relaxed slightly and stepped forward. "How should I address you, sir?"

The man frowned, clearly unable to understand Ye Guan's language. He opened his palm, and a wisp of divine sense floated toward Ye Guan.

Ye Guan understood his intent and didn't resist, allowing the divine sense to enter his sea of consciousness. Soon, an ancient language and script appeared in his mind.

The language and script of the Ancestral Civilization!

Ye Guan was excited. The man was truly connected to the Ancestral Civilization!

The man looked at Ye Guan and said, "Your aura and fate have been concealed."

Ye Guan nodded. "Yes."

"The one who concealed your aura and fate... is an incredible individual," said the man, clearly feeling shocked. Then, he looked around and asked, "What era is this?"

Ye Guan replied, "I don't know either."

The man opened his palm, bringing his thumb and index finger together. After a moment, he murmured, "Ten billion years have passed..."

Ten billion years?!

Ye Guan's eyelids twitched.

This guy's that old?! No way!

A dazed look appeared in the man's eyes. "They're all gone... All gone..."

Ye Guan hesitated before asking, "Senior, how should I address you?"

The man furrowed his brows. "Let me think..."

Ye Guan went silent.

Finally, the man spoke. "I was sealed for too long. Much of my memory is lost and muddled..."

Ye Guan nodded. "Take your time, Senior. I'm in no rush."

The man slowly closed his eyes. After a long while, he slowly opened them again and muttered, "My name is Que... Zhan! Que Zhan... A Seal Guardian..."

His gaze became unusually firm at the end of his sentence.

Ye Guan asked, "Senior, are you from the Ancestral Civilization?"

The man nodded.

Ye Guan hurriedly asked, "Senior, what happened to the Ancestral Civilization back then? Why did it disappear without a trace?"

Que Zhan shook his head, his expression showing some pain. "I don't know... I don't know... I can't remember..."

Ye Guan wanted to ask more, but the man slowly walked downward.

Ye Guan suddenly said, "Senior, can we enter that bronze palace?"

The man did not respond.

Ye Guan was about to ask again when Sui Gujin said, "He's gone."

Ye Guan was stunned. He looked at the man, whose body had somehow turned illusory at some unknown moment. When he blinked, the man disappeared. Clearly, he had already left.

What a terrifying expert...

Ye Guan was shocked, but soon, he turned to look at Sui Gujin. He hadn't even noticed the man had left. How had Sui Gujin figured it out?

Could it be...

Sui Gujin stared at him and said, "My cultivation base has been unsealed?"

With that, she walked toward the bronze palace.

Ye Guan felt a little embarrassed. Only now did he realize that the mysterious energy surrounding them had disappeared.

He followed after her.

The two of them quickly entered the bronze palace, where a faceless statue was enshrined.

Ye Guan looked at the statue with some surprise. Why was it faceless? But soon, his expression changed. It wasn't a faceless statue, but a mysterious power was obscuring its face, preventing Ye Guan from seeing its true appearance.

Upon closer examination, the statue itself had no energy, and it wasn't emitting any presence.

In other words, this was just an ordinary statue. The reason its face couldn't be seen was that the original being it depicted possessed a terrifying level of strength.

Sui Gujin stared at the statue in silence.

Ye Guan asked, "Lady Sui, could they be the former Universe Ruler?"

Sui Gujin turned to look at Ye Guan. "Young Master Ye, I'm not omniscient..."

Ye Guan was dumbfounded.

Sui Gujin looked at the pedestal beneath the statue, where a bronze-colored storage ring and a bronze-colored jade bottle were placed.

She opened her palm, and the storage ring and jade bottle appeared in her hand. The ring was sealed with a mysterious force, making it impossible to probe with divine sense.

The jade bottle, however, had no seal. She gently opened the lid and saw a drop of amber-like blood.

Blood?

Both Ye Guan and Sui Gujin were startled.

Curious, Sui Gujin poured the drop of blood into her palm. The moment the drop of amber-like blood touched her skin, it melted into her.

Sui Gujin's eyes widened in shock, and she could feel herself boiling from within. The next moment, her clothes started to disintegrate into ashes, piece by piece.