Rise of Humanity

by <unknown>

  Patriarch Nature’s mortal body was slowly disintegrating into dust as the tremendous energy in him was offered to the heaven and earth.

  Meanwhile, Zhi Jiumu was locked in a battle with Shi Buyi and Xuan Yuan on the altar. The West Barren old god was exceptionally strong, he was the only god that survived the insect planet expedition, and the one who was just a hair’s breadth away from the Heavenly Deity stage!

  Although old, he was the strongest god on the Ancestral Star!

  But that didn’t change that fact that his prowess was waning day by day, he was not in his peak state anymore.

  Time remained undefeated; no one could escape, not even the gods!

  Although Zhong Yue didn’t prompt Shi Buyi and Gongsun Xuanyuan of his flaws, Zhu JIumu wouldn’t be able to last long anyway!

  “Senior Jiumu, do you still want to fight?” Zhong Yue turned and said, “Nothing can stop me now, not even with your life. There is no need to fight anymore, I will now open a passage for you to leave the altar.”

  Zhu Jiumu laughed loudly, “Zhong Yue, will you stop the ritual after I leave?”

  Zhong Yue sternly shook his head.

  Zhu Jiumu then roared back loudly, “Then the fight will never end! I am not here for my own survival; otherwise, I wouldn’t have come at all!”

  Zhong Yue frowned, he could totally understand the old god. Zhu Jiumu was here with only one goal—to exterminate him, and stop the sealing ritual. Thus, Zhu Jiumu wouldn’t stop until one of them died!

  Zhong Yue sighed, but said nothing more.

  As time flashed by, more and more wounds appeared on Zhu Jiumu’s body, making him even less able to defend all the incoming attacks.

  Time had silently gobbled a huge chunk of his prowess. He was be able to stay in his peak form in the start of the battle if he pushed for it, but his strength would quickly plummet right after he got tired.

  That being said, this would be his last battle.

  All of a sudden, Zhu Jiumu’s grey hairs spread out out as a strong burst of blood essence surged within his body. He stopped fighting back and instead, drew a bow back and shot out the rest of his energy as an arrow.

  The arrow was luminous, containing his willpower and all of his cultivation base, but it was shot out at the cost of his own life!

  Blood flowed out his body, but the bow was fully drawn back again, and the blood that flowed out of his body was formed into a blood arrow.

  In just the blink of an eye, eight blood arrows were shot out right after. When the ninth blood arrow was shot out, his body aged to like a dying old man. Xuan Yuan decapitated him while Shi Buyi lashed the Eight Extreme Slaughtering Array out at his hands.

  Zhu Jiumu’s head flew up into the sky, but his eye was still staring at Zhong Yue where Zhong Yue clenched on the scale mirror to the front and blocked the nine arrows.

  Din, din, din—

  The arrows shattered into blood silk, and a smile spread across Zhu Jiumu’s wizened face.

  All of a sudden, the blood silk turned into arrows that slipped through the scale mirror and shot toward Zhong Yue from all directions!

  Zhong Yue looked over bitterly, but no matter how unwilling he was to bring death to the respected elder god, the three divine rays were still shot out from his divine eyes and killed Zhu Jiumu before the blood arrows reached him.

  Zhu Jiumu’s eye dimmed, the blood arrows were lost their vigor and slowly dispersed away. However, some tens of blood arrows still managed to drill through Zhong Yue’s mortal body before finally fading away.

  “Senior, may you walk on a bright path even in the afterlife…,” Zhong Yue raised his head and pulled Zhu Jiumu’s divine bow into his hands. He stared at the bow and mumbled, “I hope you don’t hate me for doing this, I didn’t want to either, but… After all, we are both just doing the best we can for our races…”

  Zhong Yue sighed, he suddenly raised his head up and shouted loudly, “Patriarch Nature, sacrifice yourself!”

  Immediately, the totem patterns engraved all around City of Nature started to distort and vanish away!

  However, new totem patterns would always reemerge within the City of Nature to replace those that were destroyed. These totem patterns were still protecting Patriarch Nature’s mortal body from fully sacrificed.

  “Brat Yue, it’s the Innate Qi!” Xin Huo suddenly said, “The Innate Qi is still lingering in his body, that is what is keeping his mortal body from dying! The altar’s power is still a little bit away from being able to offer the Innate Qi!”

  “A little more?” Zhong Yue gritted his teeth, he abruptly tossed the Divine Wing Saber out and sacrificed the saint weapon.

  Whereas Xin Huo lamented regretfully, “You should’ve used this big lion instead. He is one of the most useless things to keep with you, he is a male lion and can’t give birth to any children. It's such a waste to offer the Divine Wing Saber…”

  Perhaps, Xin Huo has only simply viewed and categorized the livings into two kinds—those who was suitable for mating, and those that were not.

  A few moments later, the Divine Wing Saber was converted into the altar’s power, and the City of Nature started to breakdown. Zhong Yue stood in front of the city and watched as it slowly turned into dust.

  A few hours later, the whole City of Nature was fully offered away into the purest form of energy back to the heaven and earth.

  Then, Zhong Yue crouched and placed his hand at the center of the altar.

  At that instant, a bloody hemisphere originating from the altar has extended to the other end of the planet in just the matter of seconds. Following by a second wave, the third… and many more!

  “I curse!” Zhong Yue raised his head, he stared right into the sky and said aloud.

  “I curse all of the celestial race in the Ancestral Star to lose the godly power that flows within their blood, and that their power will be sealed by this curse eternally!”

  “I curse all of the demon race in the Ancestral Star to lose the godly power that flows within their blood, and that their power will be sealed by this curse eternally!”

  “I curse all of the insect race in the Ancestral Star to lose the godly power that flows within their blood, and that their power will be sealed by this curse eternally!”

  Zhong Yue paused for a split second, he then shouted furiously, “And I curse, the future generations of the Xiao Mang Celestial Race to eat the human shit for the rest of their lives!”

  He slowly stood up, his hair turned white like snow, and he lowered his head as he concedes, “And let all the sins fall upon me alone!”

  Shi Buyi and Xuan Yuan were stupefied as they looked at him aging away to an old man almost instantly.

  The curse was never a one-sided ritual; at the moment of placing a curse, another curse would befall the caster as well.

  For instance, Zhong Yue was cursed with the reduction of over ten thousand years of life.

  Although he had cultivated the six secret realms and the Six Paths Reincarnations which gave him over ten thousand years of longevity even before ascending into deityhood, he was now only left with just a few hundred years to live.

  It was truly a hefty price he paid to execute the ritual!

  “Thankfully the future human leaders won’t have to pay such a great price.” Zhong Yue laughed, and he kept the scale mirror along with the copper lamp.

  Then, he said placidly, “Big lion, little Xuan Yuan, let’s leave.”

  The three of them walked down from the Black Mountain, Xuan Yuan looked back and he abruptly said, “Uncle Zhong, what should we call this mountain? The name of Black Mountain doesn’t fit so well with the purpose of this mountain to the human race.”

  Zhong Yue was piqued in interest, he smiled and asked, “Then, what do you think it should be called as?”

  Xuan Yuan looked up at the blood rain, and looked down at the flooding water beneath Black Mountain. Suddenly, he laughed and said, “I have an idea. The three of us are standing above the
water, then this word shall be made from the elements of three, human and water.”

  He wrote down a word symbol and said, “I’m going to call it ‘Tai’. It symbolizes an unyielding will, an unmoving resolution, and also… an undefeatable legend. Uncle Zhong, this is where you have paved the foundation to rise for the human race. Thus, this mountain shall be named Mount Tai!”

  TN:

  About the word, 泰(Tai) = 三(Three) overlaps 人(Human), and the 水(Water) is below them.

  Chapter 607: The World of Mortals |

  “Mount Tai?” Zhong Yue startled for a moment before he praised, “Good name.”

  Shi Buyi turned around and looked at the now Mount Tai with complicated thoughts, This brat even changed the name of our monster race’s glorious Black Mountain! But, this is no big deal as the monster race will surely be able to triumph over the human race in the future. We will dominate this world, and by then, we can still change the mountain’s name back to Black Mountain!

  The three of them returned to Swords Gate, while the blood rain still hasn’t stopped.

  It took another ten days for the blood rain to stop; in these ten days, Zhong Yue had recovered his lost prowess. Then, he used the next three months to sort and arrange all of the arts and techniques, skills and knowledge he learned, to leave left them behind for Swords Gate.

  “It’s time.” Zhong Yue mumbled.

  He summoned Xuan Yuan over and asked, “After I leave, what will you do if there are enemies trying to invade the human territory?”

  Xuan Yuan answered, “I will educate the people, and teach them cultivation. That way, the number of Qi Practitioners will grow, and we will be strong enough to defend ourselves.”

  “Then, what if your opponents are gods?”

  Xuan Yuan mulled for a second before saying, “If it happens within the next tens of years, I will ask for help from the Western Mother Empress. However, if it happens a few tens of years later, the Swords Gate will already have many gods by then, including myself. We will be strong enough to even rule the world.”

  Zhong Yue laughed, “You still have a competitor if you want to rule the world. I have cleansed the West Barren celestial race, but the Eight Barren demon race is untouched. The demon race is located across the sea, their powers are not much affected, and they also have many talents. Someone will be able to stand against you.”

  “Uncle Zhong, what am I afraid of when I have this divine sword with me?”

  Zhong Yue shook, “What if one day Nong Sovereign is no longer here to help? Then, you will have to wield the Xuan Yuan Sword solely on your own, and that won’t be enough for you to defeat the demons!”

  Xuan Yuan frowned and asked curiously, “Then why didn’t Uncle Zhong cleanse the demon race as well?”

  Zhong Yue sighed, he pointed at his white hair as he replied, “I have done far too much for the human race. I couldn’t even remember how many lives have I killed, or how many things I have done, and I am now left with only just a few hundred years to live. Do you want me to die here?”

  Xuan Yuan quickly said, “No uncle, I don’t want that!”

  “A metal that is not forged will never be a weapon good enough to kill; I have left behind the demon race so that you and the others can ascend into the deityhood. Look at you now, if all you ever knew of was to rely on the power of the Xuan Yuan Sword or helpers from the outside, you will never be able to become a god anymore. I cannot stay in the Ancestral Star, or you will never be a god; I cannot eradicate the demon race for you either, or you will also never be a god. If I take out all the enemies in the Ancestral Star, the human race will never be able to grow strong. You will have to learn to rely on your own prowess, the humans will have to learn to rely on themselves to overcome the hardships and to triumph over our enemies!”

  Xuan Yuan quickly nodded.

  Then, Zhong Yue asked again, “There are ten Sun Innate Spirits in the Ancestral Star now; when I’m here, they will never dare to come out and stir troubles. But after I leave, how will you handle them?”

  “I am a few years earlier in cultivation and am stronger than them, even after Uncle Zhong leaves, they will still have to bow before me. They will never be able to stir any trouble as long as I am here.”

  Zhong Yue nodded, he asked again, “Then what about after you leave?”

  “After I leave?” Xuan Yuan was stunned, he asked puzzlingly, “Where will I be going?”

  Zhong Yue took out a piece of divine wood and used his psyche to carve it into an incense stick engraved with marvelous totem patterns. He handed it over to Xuan Yuan and said, “The day you become a god and finally bring peace upon this land, you will burn this incense stick and I will bring you away from the Ancestral Star.”

  Xuan Yuan quickly kept the incense stick, he smiled and replied, “Before I leave, I will pick a successor strong enough to suppress the ten Sun Innate Spirits.”

  Zhong Yue shooks his head and said, “Can your successor really suppress them? The Inate Sun Spirit Body is the strongest innate spirit body, it is even stronger than your Innate Earth Spirit Body. The ten of them will become incredibly powerful! Your successor will not be stronger than you when you leave, surely they will rise against him.”

  Xuan Yuan pondered deeply, while Zhong Yue shook his head and took out a bow with ten arrows, he said, “This is the divine bow left behind by Zhu Jiumu, I have forged the moon core into it and added the totem patterns that specifically counter the Innate Sun Spirits. These ten arrows are made from the Sui Tree’s tree branches. You will continue nurturing the arrows and bow and pass it over to your successor before you leave. If the Sun Innate Spirits make any troubles, shoot them down with the arrows.

  Xuan Yuan quickly kept the bow and arrows before thanking Zhong Yue.

  ……

  Thousands of years later, the human race and demon race would both become the two preeminent races of the Ancestral Star. The strongest demon god, Chi You, would lead a total of 81 experts, including his brothers and the demon race eight grand ancestors, to wage war against the human race in his conquest of the Ancestral Star.

  The human leader Xuan Yuan fought back with the humans and monsters under his command. Ying Dragon Long Yue, Teacher Rain Shui Zian, Great Goose Gu Hongzi, and the others would also participate in the war that would be marked into the annals of history, a war that would see them ascend into legends of humanity.

  Then, there Kun Lun gods also left their names in the historical records. Huang She God and Kua Fuding allied with Chi You’s army, while Zhong Yue’s demon incarnation, Bo Xun, also led many experts in the war.

  The Ying Dragon killed Chi You, while Kua Fuding and Huang She God chased after Bo Xun. Bo Xun morphed into the form of a sun, and flew to the west where Ying Long was silently waiting to ambush Kua Fuding and Huang She God.

  As the stated, Across the land of mortals, a giant named Kua Fu held a yellow snake with two heads, and he chased after the unreacheable sun. Lakes and rivers were drained as the giant drank them away, but not even the gushing Huang He Yellow River could quench his thirst for water. Died of dehydration, the giant couldn’t last long enough before reaching to the next water source far in the west.

  After the war, the human race ascended to become rulers of the world, and Xuan Yuan was crowned as the Yellow Emperor.

  Five hundred years after the war, Yellow Emperor Xuan Yuan went to Mount Tai to host the great ritual again. Then, he announced that Zhong Yue would titled the Tai Sovereign, and a rule that all human leaders in the future would have to host the great ritual.

  Yellow Emperor Xuan Yuan burnt the incense stick left by Zhong Yue, and a dimensional rift was seen tearing open by a giant dragon claw. Dragon whiskers were lowered from the void, and the Yellow Emperor mounted on the dragon while his generals grabbed and hung themselves on the dragon’s whiskers.

  Tens of the strongest human gods were brought away by the giant dragon. There was a rumor that speculated the dragon as Ying Dragon’s
true form.

  Coincidentally, the Ying Dragon’s true form was Long Yue.

  When Yellow Emperor Xuan Yuan left with the dragon, a bow fell from the sky and was passed down to his successor. A few dozen years later, the ten Sun Innate Spirits would emerge, stirring trouble throughout society, and the human leader shot down nine of them with the divine bow and ten arrows.

  Meanwhile, Jiu Ranteng would became a god, establishing a religion in the west with himself as the supreme god in his religion. However, he dare not to spread his religion to the east as the human race was far too strong.

  Many years later, a talent from the celestial race who wet by the name of Xiang Liu would bring about a series of calamities to the world. The human leader, Yu the Great has requested Ying Nv from the Kun Lun realm to help. At that time, Ying Nv was already a god, but Xiang Liu was also a god who can’t be killed. Left with no choice, the human race could only build a godly paragon where he was imprisoned under.

  A few centuries later, a war broke out between the Qi Practitioners, finally marking the true end to all cultivation.

  ……

  Zhong Yue stood up as he saw the glimpse of figures coming toward them. They were his friends, seniors and juniors that were here to send him off.

  Ting Lanyue, Gu Hongzi, Zuo Xiangsheng, Tian Yanzhong, Li Mu, Chang Xian, Rong Cheng, and the many other Swords Gate disciples; even Bai Canghai and Bai Shuyue came along.

  Bai Canghai followed his people over to Kun Lun, while Bai Shuyue decided to stay and take care of those that were unwilling to leave even when that meant she would have her descendants sealed from the power of the Bai Zhe bloodline. In fact, even when she died of age, she still wouldn’t marry nor bear a child at all.

  When Yellow Emperor was battling against Chi You, Bai Shuyue gave Xuan Yuan a marvelous book that recorded every bit of knowledge known to the world; that was why he was able to defeat Chi You.

  Other than them, Jiao Qingtu and Jiao Fenglou from the dragon race, Chi You and the eight demon grand ancestors from the demon race, Ying Nu with Chi Xue’s hand-written letter, and the demon concubines were also here.