Desolate Era

by RWX

  “Nuwa, you can sit over here.” Lord Houwu spoke with great friendliness, arranging for Nuwa to in the first seat located directly to Ning’s left. As for Lord Houwu himself, he sat in the first seat to Ning’s right.

  It must be remembered that multiple Otherverse Lords were present. Lord Houwu himself was an Otherverse Lord; for him as the Lord Governor to be seated second only to Ning was one thing, but for Nuwa to be seated similarly? Some of the major powers present couldn’t help but mumble to themselves, “Lord Houwu truly is going out of his way to curry favor with Daolord Darknorth.” These major powers were all treating Ning the same way they would treat an Autarch… and in truth, many of them had never even met an Autarch in all their lives!

  Ning was close to an Autarch in terms of insight, and he had failed his Daomerge. It was guaranteed that his life would be a brief one, and so they wanted to seize this chance to befriend him. If they missed this chance, they would probably never get a second one. Some simple pointers from Ning would probably be more effective than countless chaos cycles of training on their own. Most of them had been trapped at the Hegemon level for many years without making any improvements at all.

  “My friends, you have all come here to welcome Daolord Darknorth.” Lord Houwu’s face was all smiles as he spoke: “As a result, Houwu City has also been given a chance to host a truly rare banquet. To be able to meet with Daolord Darknorth is our good fortune. If it wasn’t for the fact that he was searching for Nuwa, we would probably never have a chance like this. Let us first offer a toast to Daolord Darknorth in honor of the karma which brought us together.”

  “A toast to the Daolord!” Instantly, all of the major powers lifted up their cups.

  Patriarch Treewind and Imperator Jade Rainbow were considered ordinary powers here. Only those who were at least at the Hegemon level of power were seated, while the weaker ones weren’t even permitted to take part. But of course, Daolord Darknorth’s retainer Su Youji was able to take part. She was even seated close to the front.

  Ning lifted up his own wine cup, downing the wine before replying with a smile, “No need to be so courteous. Everyone, be more relaxed and casual. This is my first visit to the Blazesun Domain, which is filled with countless dangers, many strange lifeforms, and Sourcewalkers of incredible power. It isn’t easy for cultivators to stay alive here, and I’ve long heard that the one and only city which we cultivators have here is the city of Houwu. This place is a place where we cultivators can rest and be sheltered, and now that I’m here I can tell that it truly is extraordinary.”

  “It is nothing more than a resting stop,” Lord Houwu said humbly. “In the end, we’re still the weaker party here. Everyone still acknowledges that the Blazesun Ruler is still that Sourcewalker.”

  ……

  The major powers all chatted in high spirits during this banquet, telling Daolord Darknorth of all the marvels they had encountered within the Blazesun Domain. Ning was quite curious as well; although he had heard of some of the Blazesun Domain’s secrets from Hegemon Goodsong and Realmslord Windgrace, he still knew very little. As he listened to one secret after another, he began to gain a clear understanding of just how marvelous the Blazesun Domain was. As the major powers continued to converse, they all gradually began to grow more familiar with each other as well.

  “What?! A Sithe Exalt is trapped here?” Ning said in shock.

  “Just so.” Lord Houwu laughed, “The Blazesun Domain does indeed have a Sithe Exalt imprisoned within it. An Autarch captured him during the Dawn War and sent him into the Blazesun Domain, where he has suffered all sorts of torment ever since.”

  “Not just the Blazesun Domain; five of the other seven domains all have a Sithe Exalt within them!” Next to Lord Houwu was a silver-browed old man who held a fan in his hands, and he said with a smile, “A total of six Sithe Exalts have been trapped in the Eight Domains. All of them were captured during the war and have been tormented ever since.”

  “Oh?” Ning truly was surprised by this. He had heard long ago from Emperor Waveshift that there were Sithe Exalts trapped somewhere, but he never would’ve imagined that six of the Eight Domains each had a Sithe Exalt imprisoned within them!

  “Do you know why the Autarchs captured them instead of killing them?” Ning asked, puzzled.

  “No idea.”

  “The Autarchs must have their own plans.”

  “However, the Sithe Exalts truly are being constantly tortured. They suffer a fate worse than death and constantly let out miserable bellows,” the major powers reported.

  Ning nodded slowly when he heard this.

  “Daolord, if you wish to pay a visit, when you are free I’ll lead you there myself,” Hegemon Goodsong said. “Although I’ve never visited myself, I know where it is.”

  “Very well.” Ning did indeed wish to pay a visit. He had the feeling that there had to be a profound reason behind the Autarchs imprisoning the Sithe Exalts here. In fact… why didn’t the Autarchs imprison them within their own estates rather than in the Eight Domains?

  “Perhaps I’ll know once I visit them,” Ning mused. The other major powers weren’t able to see through the secrets behind the Sithe Exalts, but Ning was at a much higher level of insight than them. Perhaps he would be able to see through to the truth that they could not.

  Ning glanced at the nearby Nuwa. This entire time, Nuwa didn’t seem to really care for the food she was eating. This entire time, she was trying to guess just who Ning was. Ning laughed, then said in a loud voice, “I think we should call it a day.”

  Lord Houwu was caught offguard. He hurriedly rose to his feet and said, “Daolord, there’s one thing I would like to ask of you.”

  “Pray tell, Lord Governor,” Ning said.

  “I’ve heard long ago that your Dao of the Sword is unfathomably profound and abstruse, Daolord,” Lord Houwu said. “I, Houwu, am focused on cultivation. I go out adventuring and brave many dangers, all for the sake of finding new insights. I wasn’t able to become much more powerful, but I did find this city! To me, however… what I truly desire is to be able to walk farther along the path of the Dao. I’ve always wished to become apprenticed to an Autarch, but never had the chance. Now that you are before me, Daolord, how could I give up a chance like this?”

  As Lord Houwu spoke, he immediately knelt down and kowtowed towards Ning, then said respectfully, “Houwu is willing to follow you, Daolord, and obey your orders. I only beg that you are willing to transmit the Dao unto me and let me see a vaster, more profound Dao.”

  “Transmit the Dao?” Everyone in the hall fell silent. All of the major powers turned to stare at Lord Houwu in a rather unhappy manner.

  If Lord Houwu had merely asked for Ning to provide him with some guidance, that would be fine. It was a bit much for him to curry favor with Ning in order to gain from it, but Ning would’ve been alright with that. The problem was, Lord Houwu had actually requested that Ning ‘transmit the Dao’ to him!

  What did ‘transmit the Dao’ mean? It meant for Ning to actually transmit his full Dao to Lord Houwu in its entirety!

  Divine Sovereign Goldsun had given Ning a Golden Emperor body, and even then Ning had only given him three days of guidance without actually transmitting his Eternal Omega Sword Dao to him. This was the only Eternal Omega Dao which had ever existed in the entire Chaosverse; its value was truly incalculable! Daoist Bluestone had paid an enormous price just to view the Daolord-level Omega Sword Dao… and now, Ning had upgraded it to become an Eternal Omega Sword Dao! How was it that Lord Houwu even dared to make a request like this?

  Ning sat there on his seat, staring down at the kowtowing Lord Houwu. His gaze grew cold. “And why the hell should I transmit my Dao to you?”

  * * *

  Book 39, Chapter 15 - Private Talks

  “And why the hell should I transmit my Dao to you?” Ji Ning’s icy voice continued to echo within the silent hall.

  The atmosphere within the entire hall seemed to have f
rozen over. The other major powers were secretly speechless at how rash Lord Houwu was behaving! Although Daolord Darknorth was supposedly an amiable person, he was still a figure of terrifying power who could wipe them out with ease. How could someone behave so impetuously before a person like him?

  None of the major powers here would dare to do such a thing. Only someone who was as crazy as Lord Houwu would!

  Lord Houwu continued to kneel there on the ground, his heart shaking. He was rather afraid as well! He was afraid that Daolord Darknorth would kill him… but he still chose to take this action. By his very nature, he was a risk-taker. That was why he had established a city for cultivators within the Blazesun Domain!

  The entire Blazesun Domain only had a single city in it. Logically speaking, someone who had acquired a Sithe war-fort would put it within his own citadel or realmverse; that was normal and made sense. Lord Houwu, however, had insisted on putting it within the Blazesun Domain instead. This was a testament to his personality and the type of person he was; he dared to do the things which others did not!

  As Lord Houwu saw it, even if he failed in his request, the warm way in which he had welcomed Daolord Darknorth should at least ensure that he wouldn’t be killed out of hand.

  Lord Houwu knelt there, suppressing his terror as he spoke, “Daolord, I haven’t been able to improve in the Dao despite the passage of countless years. I simply cannot accept this. Now that you have appeared, I finally see hope. I am willing to give up everything for this opportunity.”

  “Give up everything?” Ning’s face had been icy cold, but now a hint of a smile played across the corner of his lips. The kneeling Lord Houwu, however, was unable to see it. “Very well. Give me your city and all of your treasures, including your Universe treasures. Only then would I accept you… and even then, I’ll only teach you whenever I’m in the mood. Do you accept?”

  Lord Houwu was stunned. He was to give up everything? He had risked his life countless times to acquire his treasures, to have the foundation and fortitude needed to establish a city here in the Blazesun Domain. Without his Sithe treasures, he would merely be an ordinary figure amongst the other major powers. Lord Houwu’s body felt limp and weak. Was he really able to give up all of these things?

  He was not! Even if he did acquire the Eternal Omega Sword Dao, he wouldn’t necessarily be able to improve all that much. He would, however, lose all of his Sithe treasures. He simply couldn’t accept this.

  “Clearly, you aren’t able to ‘give up everything’.” Ning calmly rose to his feet, then began to walk towards a side room. “There’s no need for any of you to follow.” As he spoke he nodded towards Nuwa, who immediately moved to enter the side room with him.

  Only after Ning left did sound return to the hall.

  “Whew.”

  “Brother Houwu, you truly are bold. I’d never dare to act as you just did.” Some other major powers walked over, while Lord Houwu rose to his feet.

  “You dummy.” The only person in the hall who was still eating was the Flamewing God, and it raised his head to glance at Lord Houwu.

  “Dummy?” Lord Houwu looked back at Flamewing.

  “I know exactly what type of person my master is. There’s no way he’d take advantage over one of his students like that! If you really said that you were willing to offer everything to Master and obey him in all things, I can guarantee that there’s no way he’d actually take your crappy treasures.” Flamewing snickered as it shook its head. “A pity. You missed your chance, and you won’t get another one.”

  “Ah?!” A look of regret and sorrow appeared on Lord Houwu’s face. Alas, he wasn’t really familiar with the type of person Daolord Darknorth was, and he truly wasn’t able to give up all of those treasures.

  Most importantly of all, when Ning spoke he had infused his voice with a sort of natural illusion which ensured that Lord Houwu would be completely focused on this choice. If he truly was determined in pursuing the Dao at any cost, Ning probably would’ve nodded and accepted him. However, he had failed the test. This was proof that his Dao-heart was insufficiently resilient.

  ……

  Within the side hall. Only two people were here; the first was Ning, while the second was Nuwa.

  “Sit. We can speak at length now.” Ning felt rather emotional as he stared at the woman before him.

  Nuwa… she was a legend to the Three Realms. But of course, Ning himself was now a legend of the Three Realms as well. Back when he was very young and weak, his first step on the path of cultivation had been him visualizing the [Nuwa Diagram]. Now, the two most dazzling cultivators of the Three Realms had come together in the Blazesun Domain, a place which was incomparably distant from the Three Realms. Destiny truly was a marvelous, unfathomable thing.

  “Daolord Darknorth, can you tell me where the Three Realms is located?” Nuwa asked the question which she wanted to ask above all others. Cultivators were blessed with long lives, but spending all that time without even knowing where home was located was a source of pain and torment.

  If she had been born a Chaos Primordial, a creature who was born into solitude and lonely wanderings, that would’ve been one thing… but she had been born into the Pangu Chaosworld and then lived in the Three Realms. She had fought for that place, and that was where all of her friends were.

  “The Three Realms is located in the Flamedragon Realmverse,” Ning said.

  “So it really is there!” Nuwa nodded. “When I heard that you came from the Flamedragon Realmverse, Daolord Darknorth, and that you were searching for me, I immediately began to suspect that the Three Realms might be located there. However, the Flamedragon Realmverse is extremely far away from the Blazesun Domain. When I left the Three Realms, I encountered a spatial tempest within that dimensional corridor and ended up being lost. I appeared here within the Blazesun Domain. I never would’ve dared to imagine that I had drifted so far from home.”

  Ning was rather surprised: “Really? So you really did lose your way within the dimensional passageway and end up arriving in the Blazesun Domain?” It took billions of years when travelling by realmship to cross such a great distance. How could she have ended up in such a distant place just because she was ‘lost’? This was crazy.

  “Yes.” Nuwa nodded. “Back then, I was merely a World-level cultivator. How could I, all by myself, have travelled from the Three Realms to the Blazesun Domain?”

  “The Blazesun Domain…” Ning was intrigued. “Actually, on this journey to the Blazesun Domain I had the vague feeling that this place is truly quite extraordinary. Now that you tell me that you came here from the Three Realms after being lost in space… the secrets within the Blazesun Domain are most likely even greater than I suspected.”

  “Secrets?” Nuwa was curious.

  “If I can discover them, I’ll let you know,” Ning laughed. “I’ve failed my Daomerge, after all. That means I’m going to die. There’s no need for me to hold anything back from you.” Ning had already decided that Nuwa would be the one to protect the Three Realms on his behalf.

  “Daolord Darknorth… can you tell me who you are, exactly?” Nuwa couldn’t help but ask, “Why is it that you know of me?”

  “Haha…” Ning laughed. “My master is Patriarch Subhuti of the Tristar Crescent Abode of Mount Innerheart.”

  “Subhuti?!” Nuwa was stunned. “Y-you are Subhuti’s disciple?!”

  “Yes.” Ning nodded.

  “I n-never would’ve imagined that you…” Nuwa had a complex look on her face. She remembered those years, those battles she had experienced alongside those lifelong friends. Back then, none of them had any guidance from the outside world at all. They had to blindly find their own paths for cultivation. Pangu had perished after establishing Heaven and Earth, and so Nuwa had become the leader of the group.

  “Subhuti, Three Purities, Tathagata, Suiren… are they doing well?” Nuwa asked.

  Ning blinked, then shook his head. “My master Subhuti is still alive, but Dao
ist Three Purities, Lord Tathagata the Buddha, Suiren, Shennong, Fuxi, as well as many of the other Immortals and Fiendgods of the Three Realms have perished, as have Keeper Everwood and Daomother Devilhand of the Seamless Gate.”

  “What?!” Nuwa was stunned. She had been born from the primordial chaos itself. To her, those ancient Fiendgods were her family, her kith and kin who she had fought alongside. How was it that they had all died?

  “There were two instigators behind their deaths. The first was Patriarch Demonheart,” Ning said, “While the other was Old Man Yuan.” Ning immediately narrated the tale of what had happened during that era.

  Nuwa was surprised to hear that the number one Sword Immortal of the Three Realms, Daofather Fuju, had actually been World God Northrest. She was enraged to hear of what the Seamless Gate did! She felt regret that she hadn’t slain Patriarch Demonheart, while she felt pain over Houyi’s death. Most of all, she felt incredible sorrow when she heard of how many of her old friends in the Three Realms had chosen to perish via self-detonation in an attempt to take out Old Man Yuan. Tears began to fill her eyes.

  “Alas.” Nuwa let out a gentle sigh.

  “That battle truly was a calamitous one,” Ning said softly. “I simply hadn’t been training long enough back then. In truth, I’ve always been hoping to be able to revive them all in the future as well… but when they self-detonated, their souls and truesouls were shattered. To bring them back to life is far, far too difficult.”

  Ning didn’t go into detail as to why. If even a Celestial Immortal like Yu Wei was very difficult to revive, Three Purities and the others would be nearly impossible to bring back. All of them had been incredible figures who had been blessed with the essence of Autarch Awakener’s godgems. How incredibly hard would it be to revive them?!

  “In the end, I failed my Daomerge. I failed by just a thread.” Ning shook his head. “Ever since I failed the Daomerge, I’ve been wanting to find news of you. I could sense that you were still alive! I’m going to die, and the one thing I cannot help but worry about is the Three Realms. I wish to find a protector for the Three Realms, but I just cannot trust anyone else with it. But if you, Nuwa, were present… I wouldn’t feel nearly as worried as I do currently.”