Desolate Era

by RWX

  Countless Immortals and Fiendgods were brought back to life. Many friends were reunited.

  Tathagata, Maitreya, Ananda… these old friends of the Buddhist Sangha all gathered together. As for the Daoist Way? Three Purities, Daofather Carefree, Lu Dongbin, and the others all gathered together as well, with those who had survived the Endwar narrating what had happened afterwards.

  Too many people. Too many stories. All of them had been brought back to life.

  “Junior apprentice-brother.” Houyi held Chang’e by the hand, walking over to stand before Ning. “Thank you.”

  “Haha. Eldest apprentice-brother, spend some time chatting with my sister-in-law. Don’t waste any time on me,” Ning laughed.

  “Master.” Ning walked over to Daoist Threelives, who looked rather hesitant even though the big yellow bear next to him nodded encouragingly. Daoist Threelives was normally a very straightforward and heroic figure, but when he spoke to Subhuti and his other old friends he quickly learned just how incredible Ji Ning was. Ji Ning was someone completely omnipotent, capable of controlling life and death, and able to link past, present, and future together. And… Ji Ning was his disciple? Although he was nominally Ning’s master, this was their first time actually meeting each other.

  “Uh. Hi there, Darknorth,” Daoist Threelives said rather hesitantly. This was their first meeting, and the two didn’t really share the relationship which a master and disciple should. This was something which took time.

  Ning didn’t try to force things. He turned, staring off into the distance. All the Immortals and Fiendgods of the Three Realms had been brought back to life. They were all reunited now, sharing their stories with each other. It would be years before things calmed down.

  Ning immediately retreated, vanishing without a trace.

  ……

  Ning arrived back at the Black-White College of Stillwater Province, located within the Grand Xia major world of the Three Realms. Since Ning had remade the entire Three Realms with his will alone, the Grand Xia was currently devoid of life.

  “Senior apprentice-sister.” Ning walked over to the Dao Debate Palace of the Black-White College. He had left her for last. She was going to be revived by herself.

  “Come back to me, senior apprentice-sister.”

  Countless specks of light began to appear. They appeared unspeakably beautiful and graceful, and they gathered together into the form of the young, black-robed Yu Wei. As more and more truesoul fragments gathered, life appeared within Yu Wei’s eyes. She stared at Ning, who looked back into the eyes of his senior apprentice-sister Yu Wei.

  The white-robed Ning and the black-robed Yu Wei simply stared at each other in silence. As the final piece of her truesoul fragment returned, Yu Wei regained all of her memories and she began to emit the aura of true life.

  “Junior apprentice-brother?” Yu Wei couldn’t believe it. Her final memories were of the war-torn Three Realms and her death at the hands of the Godking.

  “Senior apprentice-sister.” Ning stepped forward, gently taking his wife into his arms. He simply held her, inhaling into her hair and smelling her sweet fragrance. This scent had become a dusty memory that had lain dormant for many years. Ning felt intoxicated by it. He had trained and fought and bled for so long, but it was all worth it. This single instant… it surpassed all of eternity.

  Yu Wei hugged Ning back. She was still rather confused. Her memories had ‘jumped’ from her death in the Three Realms war to the present day. She didn’t know what Ning had experienced, but she knew that Ning must have made many, many sacrifices in order to bring her back to life.

  Finally Ning released Yu Wei, but he continued to hold her by the hand. He pointed at the area around them. “Senior apprentice-sister, remember this?”

  “Of course I do. This is the Dao Debate Palace. We had a little competition here, and you lost,” Yu Wei teased. Suddenly, she couldn’t help but ask, “Junior apprentice-brother… can you tell me what has happened?”

  “Let’s sit down and talk it over.” Ning pulled Yu Wei over to sit down atop a dais before the Dao Debate Palace, then began to explain. “During that battle, you were killed by the Godking…”

  Ning talked for a long, long time. He narrated the end of the war for the Three Realms, his journey to the Badlands Territory, his abduction by Hegemon Brightshore, and even his adventure into that otherverse. He explained how he came to understand the Omega Sword Dao and then used it to become a Daolord of the First Step, Second Step…

  He told of his adventures in the Terror Starsea, of how he fought to acquire a Voidsea Jadeseal within the Waveshift Realm, of his battles against Archons of the Sacred Cities, and even him acquiring the Flamewing God and then begging Autarch Titanos to bring her back to life.

  “I was heartbroken when I failed in that attempt.” Ning pointed towards an area up ahead. “I got completely drunk, right over there. I fell asleep on the snow.”

  With but a thought, Ning caused snow to flutter down around them. Ning and Yu Wei gazed at the beautiful snowscape, while Ning said with a smile, “It’s actually quite odd. I was heartbroken, which is why the snow fell… but now when I see the snow, I feel very happy.”

  Yu Wei didn’t say anything. She just tightly held onto Ning’s hand. She herself felt heart-aching pain ever since Ning had begun his tale.

  Ning continued to narrate his story. “Afterwards, I attempted the Daomerge. Unfortunately, I failed.” He explained of his hunt for Nuwa, his meeting with the five Autarchs, and how he had gone into the Sithelands to save the Paragon of Pills. He told of how he had found the [Five Truncheon Chapters] within that hidden world, and in the end managed to complete the [Void Everlasting] technique which gave him an imperishable truesoul. He told her of how he had become an Omega Emperor, and of the war which the Sithe had unleashed.

  “We won that final battle. I broke through and took the final step on my path.” Ning smiled as he looked at Yu Wei. “We won, and so everything I wanted became real. All my old friends came back to life… and of course, so did you.”

  Yu Wei looked at Ning. She truly couldn’t imagine how Ning could’ve experienced so many things since her death in the Three Realms. It had been just a blink of an eye for her. She felt pained at all he had suffered.

  “Look.” Ning pointed forwards. In front of the Dao Debate Palace, a plum blossom suddenly emerged from the fallen snow, releasing its sweet fragrance as it bloomed.

  “In my past life on Earth, there was a saying in my homeland: ‘Only after enduring the bone-chilling cold shall you smell the fragrance of the plum blossom.’” Ning laughed loudly. “I’ve endured the bone-chilling cold. Now, I finally can smell the fragrance of the plum blossom.” As he spoke, he pressed his nose against Yu Wei’s face and gave her a sniff, then said in an absolutely shameless manner, “Mm, plum blossom. It smells so good.”

  The plum blossoms continued to emerge from the snow before the Dao Debate Palace. As for Ning and Yu Wei, they continued to sit there atop the dais. They had so many stories to share with each other, including stories of their daughter. Ning had many things he wanted to tell her, and Yu Wei wanted to hear them all.

  ……

  The Three Realms. A great banquet, the likes of which had never been seen before, was being hosted here on this day. Lord of Chaos Ji Ning, also known as Autarch Darknorth, was personally hosting this banquet. The eight Autarchs and countless Hegemons and Emperors who had fought in the war had all been teleported here by Ning to take part in this feast. This was also a victory feast for them, after having won the war.

  Ning was seated at the highest position, while his wife Yu Wei was next to him. To each side of them were the eight Autarchs.

  Below them, there was no further division of rank. It was a veritable sea of Hegemons and Emperors! As for Subhuti, Nuwa, Brightmoon, and the other leaders of the Three Realms, they had a section all their own.

  Many major powers used this banquet to discuss the Dao with each other
, and there was much merry-making and rejoicing. Many of the cultivators brought painters, musicians, and other talented entertainers to spread joy amongst each other!

  “I never imagined that this day would come,” Buddha Ksitigarbha said with a smile.

  “And I never would’ve thought that I’d have a disciple like Autarch Darknorth! I never even taught him!” Daoist Threelives roared happily while drinking some wine.

  “Okay, now you are just blatantly showing off,” Crimsonbright remarked.

  “So what if I am?” Daoist Threelives mock-glared at him.

  ……

  Houyi and Chang’e were seated together. Houyi no longer looked like the quiet, forlorn woodcutter of old. His spirit and bravado had been aroused once more.

  On the other side were ‘Azure Bamboo’ Yang Quding and Hegemon Dawnclear, who were together again.

  The first pair belonged to the ‘Three Realms Allliance’, while the second pair included Ning’s personal disciple. They were all seated close to each other, and both duos smiled and nodded at each other.

  ……

  “So you are Brightshore? I heard you actually abducted Autarch Darknorth long ago?”

  By now, Hegemon Brightshore was a famous man. There were many Hegemons and Emperors who wished to befriend him. He chortled, “Haha, yes. I have to say, I was lucky. Who would’ve thought that when I swallowed that batch of cultivators, I would end up abducting the man who would become Autarch Darknorth? Haha. It was luck! Luck!”

  ……

  “I’m telling you guys, me and Darknorth are like brothers! I could tell from the very first moment I saw him that he was something special.” Ninedust was busy bragging to the other Hegemons and Emperors.

  ……

  The Paragon of Pills and her ‘big brother’ were together, beaming happily as they took part in the feast. When their gazes met with Ning’s, both sides raised their goblets in toasts.

  ……

  It was a truly grand celebration with oceans of food and drink. The Immortals and Fiendgods all made merry in this truly unprecedented gathering, while the major powers who put on performances did their utmost to please.

  Ning and Yu Wei sat up high, staring down at the many cultivators below them. Ning saw his father Ji Yichuan, his mother Yuchi Snow, his daughter Ji Brightmoon, and her Dao-companion Stonepool. He saw Uncle White, Autumn Leaf, Little Qing, and many other friends from his earliest days. He saw all the Immortals and Fiendgods of the Three Realms, and the countless major powers he had encountered on his path.

  “Alphan… Sithe…” Ning silently shook his head. “What’s the point of fighting? Being strong enough to protect those we care about is enough.”

  Ning turned, his gaze intersecting with Yu Wei’s. “I want to kiss you,” Ning said.

  “There’s too many people here!” Yu Wei was shocked. “No way. No way! Wait for the feast to be over.”

  “Don’t be afraid. Your husband is the Lord of Chaos. So long as I will it, they won’t see a thing.” Ning lowered his head, burying himself in Yu Wei’s lips.

  Desolate Era - Afterword

  Author’s Afterword:

  Whew. It’s over. Nearly two and a half years have passed, starting from Dec 16, 2012 until today, April 10, 2015. Our journey through the [Desolate Era] is finally over. The enormous [Desolate Era] started with our Ji Ning stumbling through the Netherworld Kingdom into his next reincarnated life, and now we can finally put a final period on this story.

  This is the seventh novel which Tomatoes has written. [Legend of the Astral Peaks], [Inch of Radiance], [Stellar Transformations], [Coiling Dragon], [The Nine Cauldrons], [Swallowed Star] came before it. This has been the seventh.

  [Desolate Era] has had games and anime made based off of it, with the first episode of the anime already released. It was a bit slow at first due to a lack of familiarity, but starting from the third episode it should speed up quickly. It should stabilize at roughly an episode a week and will continue to be broadcast. A TV series is about to start shooting as well, and it’ll go on satellite television. We’re also preparing for a movie, but [Desolate Era] will require a large amount of investment and so it will be a while in the coming.

  Whew. Two and a half years. Haha, two and a half years is a very long period of time! My son was born, and now he can actually recite poetry. I’m speechless.

  As for this novel I spent two and a half years writing? At first, everything was so smooth and easy. I was fired up and filled with energy, and the letters just kept flowing. However, towards the middle/late parts of the novel, I was just too tired, especially after I went past 2 million characters. I felt as though I was a marathon runner who had reached his limit and at the verge of collapse. I worked until very late at night, every night, burning the midnight oil and tearing my hair out to think about what to write. Sometimes I couldn’t even be bothered to shower. I was a man possessed.

  I was most tired during the latter half of last year. The pressure was tremendous, and the need to write two chapters a day resulted in the plot being imperfect. I tried to force myself to think and to post new chapters, and I nearly went mad from it all. There were several times, late at night last year, where I felt my heartrate speeding up so rapidly that I thought that I might die at any moment. I managed to force myself to last until January, at which point I gritted my teeth and said ‘Screw it’, slowing down to one chapter a day.

  This made things much easier for me. My mental energies quickly began to recover, and I feel as though my physical conditioning has improved by 50%, haha.

  I poured my blood, sweat, and tears into [Desolate Era]. It feels like part of my life itself. Now that I’m done writing it, I feel relaxed. Finally, I can take a long break… but at the same time, I feel a bit reluctant to part with it. My emotions are quite complicated.

  No matter what, [Desolate Era] is over! This book is done, and I had a smile on my face as I wrote the grand finale.

  Mm. As for what’s next? A new book, of course!

  The new book will be set in a strange and mysterious continent. It’ll be a completely different type of book, one which I’ve never written before. In fact, the cultivation system within it will be unlike any other I’ve worked on! Haha. I’ve been a novel writer for nearly ten years, after all. I need to find my breakthrough! All I want to say is that I’ll use all of my emotions to write this new novel, pouring all of my ardor into it.

  But of course… now that I’ve finished [Desolate Era], I’m going to completely relax and empty my mind for a time, then prepare for a new book. I’ll give myself two months of rest, then officially start the next book on June 15th!

  For news on my next book as well for some super secret updates, you can all pay attention to my public ‘WeChat’ account. I’ll keep it updated with news. All you need to do is search for ‘我吃西红柿’ or ‘fanqie34’ and you’ll be able to add me.

  Alrighty then. Everything’s ok now. The world of [Desolate Era] has come to an end. The next time we meet, it’ll be in the world of my new book. See you all on June 15th!

  Tomatoes,

  The evening of June 10th, Yangzhou City.

  * * *

  * * *

  RWX’s Afterword:

  Whew. Wow. Yikes. Wooooow!

  This is the third IET novel that I have worked on (with Coiling Dragon and Desolate Era being solely translated by myself). I agree with author IET that ‘2.5 years is a very long period of time’; I spent just as much time translating DE as he did writing it, and in fact I’ve been translating his novels from 2014 to 2018! That’s an even longer period of time.

  I want to thank each and every reader, commenter, donor, sponsor, and friend who has supported this translation. Like IET, it’s been a very long and exhausting process and I’m both filled with joy that its over but also nostalgia and a bit of reluctance to part with it. However, ‘there is no party that goes on forever’; 天下没有不散的筵席. I’ve translated in sickness and in
health (I was actually in the hospital just earlier today due to a severe fever), through breakups and through makeups, and all the other things that can happen over the course of such a long period of time. Now, Ji Ning’s story has finally come to an end. As IET notes in his April 2015 afterword, there is also a live-action adapation of DE coming shortly (theoretically in the next month or so) and we’ll be sure to announce it as well! We were originally going to have a short video by IET as well, but he couldn’t quite fit it in his schedule. We’ll post it as a separate announcement later.

  There have been so many memories that have built up over the years, and I’ve talked and interacted with so many of you that I genuinely view you as friends and family. My keenest memory is of a ‘Daolord’ on Patreon who deleted his pledge… or rather, his brother did. When his brother deleted the pledge, he added a note: ‘Thanks for translating, but my big bro just passed away and I’m cutting his pledges :( Thanks for understanding, he failed his Daomerge‘ I damn near broke down on the spot. I hope that all of you and your loved ones are as hale and hearty as you were when you first started Desolate Era, and that you will continue to be so many, many years in the future!

  So what will I be doing next? Well, five years translating one specific author is more than enough, even one that I cherish as much as IET; for newcomers, it was my translation of Coiling Dragon which inaugurated the launch of Wuxiaworld! In addition to maintaining the site and handling company matters like licenses, copyright, etc., I’ll be doing two things in specific - I’ll be announcing tomorrow the relaunch of Godsfall Chronicles working with Xiao Lai (we have ten chapters ready!), and when I have a sufficient stockpile I’ll launch Dragon Talisman on Wuxiaworld! I said before that I viewed Godsfall Chronicles as one of the most novel-quality webnovels out there, and I stand by that belief. As for Dragon Talisman, it has a very refreshingly kind-hearted main character and a world which is steeped deep in Chinese lore and history, which I will endeavor to make as accessible as possible. These are two spectacular novels, and I hope to gain the same support and love as I’ve had from you in the past :D.