Chapter 183

Hongjun's face was grim; he could only watch helplessly as Rahu's silhouette vanished, heaven and earth kept trembling, and the Great Dao began to disengage from the Primordial Wasteland.

He swept his wide sleeve, gathered the spiritual treasure that Rahu had been knocked down, turned back intending to speak with Yang Mei, but saw that his silhouette had already disappeared.

Since the calamity began, Hongjun felt for the first time a headache about to split his head, unable to speak.

He also sensed the Heavenly Dao being replenished; despite his state of mind, he couldn't help but curse: "These affairs are utterly without words! Misfortunes come in droves, yet they leave no room to speak—how unreasonable!"

At this moment, Yang Mei's eyes were blood-red as he fled into Chaos.

Yang Mei's condition was poor, and he did not know how deep Hongjun's situation was; it was not a time for revenge, so he could only leave first.

But Yang Mei would certainly not easily let Hongjun and Rahu off; the three close friends had died, and no matter how they explained it, it ultimately came down to their deaths.

Yang Mei had originally intended to go to Cloud Dream Marsh to recuperate, where a great formation guarded it; before Hongjun had digested this harvest, he would absolutely not dare enter the formation for a short time.

This period would be enough for him to recover, but after consideration, Yang Mei still decided to head into Chaos.

He knew that once he went to Cloud Dream Marsh, Qi and the others would inevitably be dragged in, becoming entangled in his feud with Hongjun and Rahu.

He was unwilling to do that, and moreover, now in Chaos the Great Dao was revealed; only by going there could he complete his rest in the shortest time.

Only by entering Chaos could the time to prove the Grand Dao match or even surpass Hongjun's, giving him a chance for revenge.

"During the calamity, you received the aid of heaven and earth; now that the calamity has passed, what comes next remains unknown!"

Yang Mei traversed space, gritting his teeth as he spoke.

"If you wish to prove the Dao, you must abandon the Way of Gods and turn to the immortals and demons; yet the path of immortals and demons, though swift in cultivation, is ultimately only a minor way."

"Without comprehending the Great Dao, merely cultivating realms without tempering, you will eventually realize the might of divine abilities!"

As Yang Mei spoke, his silhouette had already reached the membrane of heaven and earth.

Seeing the heaven-and-earth membrane before him grown much thinner, Yang Mei said nothing, casually tore it open, and flashed into Chaos.

Not long after Yang Mei left, Hongjun also arrived at this place, fell silent for a moment, said nothing more, and turned toward Jade Capital Mountain.

Only after returning to his cave abode did Hongjun sit cross-legged on the futon, then mutter to himself:

"If you do not enter Cloud Dream Marsh, it seems we will inevitably have a battle between us."

Hongjun never expected Yang Mei to deny him even the chance to communicate; he even thought that if Yang Mei entered Cloud Dream Marsh, he would join him there.

"I am willing to enter that great formation voluntarily; in Hongjun's view, that already suffices to show sincerity."

Hongjun sighed and said:

"It's a pity that I ultimately failed to preserve the last chance to have a friend; I have actually fallen into what Rahu said—how am I any different from him?"

Having said that, Hongjun closed his eyes; the Creation Jade Disc glowed brightly, as if an intangible yet vast will manifested within it.

Under its light, countless Great Daos manifested in Hongjun's primordial spirit—how could it be limited to three thousand?

Bei Fang Battlefield

The conflict between the Dragon Clan and the Qilin Clan had stalled; as the calamity ended, the calamity qi permeating heaven and earth gradually dissipated, and the people on the battlefield also awakened.

Both sides gazed at the battlefield before them; their spiritual platforms gradually cleared, countless tragic scenes filled their view, and the wails of living beings echoed nonstop. The earth shattered, resentment permeated, and both sides suffered heavy losses.

Innumerable karmic forces surged toward the people on the battlefield; the obscured spiritual platforms could not hear the wails of beings, but as they awakened, those beings who had died because of them seemed right before their eyes.

This emotion destroyed the will of both sides to contend, beginning a disorderly withdrawal, leaving only a desolate northern land.

Zu Long, Qing Long, and the Primordial Qilin were also among them, their expressions dazed as they felt the resentment permeating heaven and earth; their towering vigor, however, was directed against them.

Relying on their past accumulated prestige, both sides barely organized their forces and returned to the East.

Within merely ten thousand years, the accumulated fortune of the three clans had almost been completely lost; all beings of the Primordial Wasteland now intensely resented the three clans that had been the protagonists of the calamity.

Entangled in karmic forces, the three clans' strength did not advance but retreated; countless heroes from past calamities, unable to bear self-reproach from within, took their own lives.

In a mere ten thousand years, the number of the three clans who committed suicide even rivaled that at the end of the calamity.

Nan Fang Continent

Yuan Huang gazed at the Undying Volcano that had become active again, his heart unsure what flavor it was—pain? confusion? or both.

Suddenly Yuan Huang seemed to think of something; the aura of the Grand Dao permeated the entire heaven and earth, and all that could be heard was his words: "Heavenly Dao above, I, Yuan Huang, chief of the Primordial Wasteland's Phoenix Clan, leader of the feathered tribes, deeply feeling my grave sins, I wish together with the Phoenix Clan to eternally suppress the Undying Volcano."

"To safeguard the Primordial Wasteland's heaven and earth, if sins are never cleansed, I shall never again involve myself in its affairs—may the Heavenly Dao bear witness!"

Thunder rumbled in the sky, responding to Yuan Huang's oath, while endless merit descended, helping the Phoenix Clan cleanse part of its karmic debt.

And Yuan Huang's oath, under the support of the Heavenly Dao, echoed throughout the Primordial Wasteland.

Although the calamity has passed only ten thousand years ago, the Primordial Wasteland has also regained much vitality; many newborn beings even do not know what the calamity was.

They were also indifferent to it; in their view, since their birth, the Primordial Wasteland has always been as it appears before them.

East Sea

Zu Long and Qing Long also heard Yuan Huang's oath; the two fell silent for a long time, then Zu Long spoke: "That is actually a good method, Meng Zhang, my younger brother; after I take my oath, Ying Long will be released by you—for now I have no face to meet him."

"The painstakingly built situation, due to my fault, has let the Dragon Clan fall to this state; all that remains is to trouble Ying Long, leaving him such a mess."

Qing Long said nothing, merely looking sorrowful; only after half-waking did he nod with an "en".

Then he forced a smile and said: "Ying Long has always been the most promising among us; I think he can preserve a sliver of hope for the Dragon Clan."

Zu Long smiled, but did not reply.

A giant dragon rose from the East Sea, dancing upward into the sky, the aura of the Grand Dao fully revealed.

"Heavenly Dao above, I, Zu Long, chief of the Primordial Wasteland's Dragon Clan, foremost of all scaled beings, knowing my grave sins, I wish to use my body to suppress the sea's eye, so that heaven and earth and the four seas may be at peace."

From now on, the Dragon Clan withdraws from the Primordial Continent, no longer concerning themselves with its affairs, eternally guarding the four seas, summoning clouds and bringing rain to repay the karmic debt of heaven and earth, hoping the Heavenly Dao will bear witness.

Dao sounds rang out in the sky, countless heavenly flowers fell, washing away the Dragon Clan's karmic sins; this signifies that the oath of the Ancestral Dragon has been acknowledged by the Heavenly Dao.

Countless members of the Dragon Clan felt much lighter in body, yet none showed a hint of joy; their eyes were filled only with sorrow.

(End of Chapter)