Chapter 4058: The Long River Collapses
Sixty-five Doomsday Bells stood neatly arranged upon the River of Time.
The bell tones were not loud, but they spread across the Nether Kingdom, resounding through the starry sky, startling many.
The Dark Remnant stood atop the North Marsh Great Wall, and a whisper came from within its abdomen: "When the Doomsday Bells toll, all realms fall silent. The Nether Ancestor? Taking the initiative to reveal traces—is it to save the Nether Kingdom, or is it worried about the Life Ancestor crossing the River of Time to descend? Or perhaps... Its injuries have fully healed, and it no longer has any scruples?"
"Boom!"
The second tribulation lightning descended.
Bolts of lightning, dazzling and blinding, shattered heaven, earth, sun, and moon, striking Gong Nanfeng.
At the same time, the sixty-five bronze chime bells rang in unison. The sound waves overlapped, sixty-five layers stacked upon each other, shattering the twelve-colored rainbow bridge that Gong Nanfeng had manifested. They also shattered the stone wall and the Life Ancestor Gate that served as the medium for Gong Nanfeng's crossing of the River of Time.
As the Life Ancestor Gate shattered, Gong Nanfeng's true body was severely torn apart, on the verge of being ripped in two by the River of Time.
After enduring the second tribulation lightning, divine light surged from his entire body. Gritting his teeth, he let out a long roar: "Then let us fight! Today, I shall face two opponents alone, battling the heavens and you, Nether Ancestor."
"Void Extinction Method One, One Method Extinguishes the Nether. Lamp-Lighting Nether Extinction Art!"
Gong Nanfeng raised both arms, and twelve divine lamps condensed around him. The forms of four of these lamps matched the Original Lamp, the Selfless Lamp, the Soul-Devouring Lamp, and the Life-Death Lamp.
First came the Lamp-Lighting Nether Extinction Art, and only later did the legend arise of the Life Ancestor wishing to forge twelve divine lamps to surpass the Ancient Desolate Witch Ancestor.
Unfortunately, with the power of two lifetimes, only four lamps had been forged.
The sixty-five bronze chime bells rang out, their sound gradually rising in pitch, all flying toward Gong Nanfeng.
Meanwhile, completely disregarding the third tribulation lightning descending upon him, Gong Nanfeng struck with the twelve divine lamps merged into one, unleashing the Lamp-Lighting Nether Extinction Art to clash with the sixty-five bronze chime bells.
"Boom!"
Even the River of Time and the Nether Kingdom could not withstand this power. They shattered, and instantly, time across the entire universe became chaotic.
In some star regions, hundreds or thousands of years passed.
In other star regions, time briefly came to a standstill.
Within the star regions, some people inexplicably found themselves transported to an era thousands of years in the future; others had vague memories of the future, hundreds of years from now, flash through their minds.
The Nether Kingdom was nearly torn in two. Countless continental plates, thousands or tens of thousands of miles across, fell into the starry sky.
An ocean of time imprints spread across the surrounding star regions, forming a unique time nebula.
Faced with such a powerful shockwave, the Past Divine Palace, the Future Divine Palace, and the Ancient Relic Realm could not withstand it. They had all retreated into the Demon Ancestor Ridge when the bronze chime bells appeared.
Even so, residual waves still surged into the Demon Ancestor Ridge, leveling all its peaks.
All the gods fled into the Destiny Temple to escape the calamity.
The Void Kun War God was a step too slow. A sound wave struck him, and his body instantly exploded. Fortunately, it was only a residual wave, weakened by the Demon Ancestor Ridge and the Ancient Relic Realm. Though injured, he at least survived.
"Watching the excitement and getting caught up in it myself—could there be worse luck than this?"
The Void Kun War God's blood energy reassembled his divine body, his heart full of regret.
He had thought that, with the Nether Sea Spirit and the Red Crow King successively severely wounded by the Life Ancestor, the situation had stabilized. But before he could rejoice for long, this heavy blow landed on him.
No one knew how much time passed. No more bell sounds rang out. The Ancestor aura and tribulation clouds had all dissipated.
"Whoosh!"
Chi Yao flew into the region where the power shockwaves were most chaotic and intense, searching for traces of Zhang Ruochen. But she only found the sixty-five bronze chime bells.
They had lost their vitality, falling freely through the void.
Throughout the entire Nether Kingdom and the entire star region, there was no trace of Zhang Ruochen's aura.
"Chen Ge!"
Chi Yao's heart was filled with worry and urgency.
The tribulation lightning that had fallen earlier was meant by heaven and earth to kill an Ancestor. How could Zhang Ruochen, with his cultivation, possibly withstand it?
Why had he gone to block it?
Chi Yao collected the bronze chime bells, looked toward the Demon Ancestor Ridge, turned into a streak of light, and flew over.
...
The River of Time experienced only a brief interruption in its flow before returning to its normal course.
Such was the power of heaven and earth!
Zhang Ruochen walked along the River of Time. The bloody hole in his chest would not heal. Step by step, he went toward the past.
From afar, he saw the Celestial Pivot Needle floating on the river's surface.
Gong Nanfeng lay curled up on top of it, disheveled and gaunt, even trembling slightly, like an abandoned old dog on the verge of death from illness.
"You still haven't left?"
Zhang Ruochen arrived beside the Celestial Pivot Needle, looking at him calmly.
At this moment, he looked very much like the Zhang Ruochen that Gong Nanfeng had seen when he returned after cultivating the First-Rank Divine Path. In fact, he looked even worse.
Gong Nanfeng curled up there, not lifting his head, his voice hoarse: "I finally understand why I chose to become you, rather than kill you and take over your body."
"Because I helped you block a tribulation lightning?" Zhang Ruochen said.
Gong Nanfeng said, "A little bit. Actually, it's more because I was never a match for the Nether Ancestor—not in the past, not now, and not in the future. But you have a chance."
Zhang Ruochen asked, "Who exactly is the Nether Ancestor?"
"The Life Ancestor might know, but I don't. If I did, I would have struck when It was at Its weakest. Why would I have let the opportunity slip?"
"It revealed such a big flaw this time. With your intelligence, you can definitely seize the clue and find It. Doesn't that count as me indirectly doing you a huge favor?"
Gong Nanfeng suddenly sat up, delighted, and said, "Did you see that? It was afraid! It was finally afraid of me! If It weren't afraid, why would It stop me? By making a move, It might have already been locked onto by Its enemies. Haha! It is still a bit afraid of me... cough, cough..."
Because he was too excited, many parts of his body were breaking apart, cracks appearing.
Having simultaneously endured attacks from heaven and earth and the Nether Ancestor, along with the backlash from the River of Time, his internal injuries were far more severe than they appeared on the surface.
Zhang Ruochen looked at his miserable state and said, "Have you always been this optimistic?"
"If I weren't optimistic, could I have survived until now?"
Suddenly, Gong Nanfeng's mood turned somber. He said, "You asked why I haven't left yet. I just wanted to say a proper goodbye to you. After this farewell, we will never see each other again. I also wanted to see Feng Caiyi one last time. She's pretty good—I raised her. Take good care of her. I can no longer hold back time. I'm about to leave. Before I go, let me use this Ancestor-level cultivation to send her off one last time."
Gong Nanfeng raised his arm with difficulty, his finger tracing a line in the void. A Destiny Joy Gate appeared.
For some reason, tears welled up in the corners of his eyes. He cursed angrily, "Damn it, I really don't want to accept this. I wish I could fight the Nether Ancestor one-on-one. But there's no more chance, no more chance!"
...
The Nether Sea Spirit stood on the ruins of the Nether Kingdom, arriving at a fault line. Ahead, space was shattered, and the Ancestor's destructive energy lingered for a long time.
The Demon Ancestor Ridge floated within the shattered space.
As the Ancestor Realm of the Demon Ancestor, its structure and matter were unparalleled, so it had been preserved.
The Nether Sea Spirit's anger was difficult to quell.
Right under its nose, the Nether Kingdom had been nearly destroyed, and countless Nether soldiers and generals had perished. This would not only cause its status within the Nether Ancestor Faction to plummet but also cost it the chance to advance to the Ancestor realm.
The Nether Ancestor would not help a failure break through to the Ancestor realm.
Most critically, having endured two strikes from the Life Ancestor in succession, its origin had been damaged, and its divine soul had suffered an incurable wound. Now that the Life Ancestor had clearly been killed by the Nether Ancestor, it could only vent its hatred on the gods of the Destiny Temple.
Perhaps, by absorbing their divine souls, it might still have a glimmer of hope.
"Boom!"
The Red Crow King arrived, its tree body charred black.
Only branches remained, no leaves.
Clearly, the Life Ancestor's Heart Furnace Calamity Fire had burned away at least half its life.
Xiu Chen Heavenly God, Seven Venerable, Void Kun War God, Lian Xi, Que, Hai Shang You Ruo, Bore, Blood Butcher... and many other Infinite Realm-level powerhouses stood outside the Destiny Temple, gazing at the two Half-Ancestor auras rising into the sky. Their hearts were heavy.
The Nether Sea Spirit and the Red Crow King had not died. They had returned!
Faced with the Nether Kingdom after such devastation, how could they not retaliate?
"What do we do now? Can we hold them off?"
Blood Butcher asked the few Indestructible Infinite powerhouses present.
The Void Kun War God's voice was weak. "Don't look at me. I don't want to be pushed to the forefront. Forget Half-Ancestors—even an Indestructible Infinite could take my life right now."
Seven Venerable shook his head gently. "The Ancient Relic Realm is almost destroyed. The formation inscriptions on the Demon Ancestor Ridge and the Destiny Temple were also worn away by the residual Ancestor power from earlier. Facing a Half-Ancestor, aside from self-destructing our divine sources and divine hearts, we have no countermeasures."
At this moment, no one cared about damaging morale anymore.
Morale was only needed if there was a battle to fight.
Bore looked down the mountain and said, "No need to be so disheartened. The Empress is here!"
"Whoosh!"
As soon as the words fell, Chi Yao's stunningly beautiful figure stood outside the Destiny Temple.
She looked at the crowd, did not see Zhang Ruochen, and her heart sank. She asked, "Where is Di Chen?"
Bore stepped out of the crowd, her expression pained. "Di Chen was struck by the tribulation lightning and fell into the River of Time. We cannot enter the River of Time, so we don't know what's happening inside."
From afar came the Nether Sea Spirit's deep voice: "The power of heaven and earth can kill an Ancestor. How could Zhang Ruochen withstand it? If he were still alive, he would have come out by now!"
The Nether Sea Spirit manifested its mist-like body, tens of thousands of miles tall.
The Eighteen Layers of Nether Purgatory floated behind it.
"Boom!"
The Demon Ancestor Ridge shook.
The Red Crow King landed heavily in the Demon Ancestor Ridge, its roots plunging into the ground. While absorbing the Ancestor divine energy from the earth veins to heal its injuries, it advanced toward the Destiny Temple.
It said, "In the clash just now, the River of Time experienced a brief collapse. Could Zhang Ruochen's body and soul be harder to destroy than the River of Time?"
Chi Yao summoned the Blood-Drop Sword, her gaze flickering imperceptibly toward the Twenty-Seven Layer Celestial World, which had sunk deeper into the void.
To fight a Half-Ancestor—even a severely weakened one—she had to rely on the power of the Twenty-Seven Layer Celestial World.
But just as she looked toward the Twenty-Seven Layer Celestial World, she sensed an overwhelmingly dense dark aura. She immediately called out, "Since the Venerable Lord has arrived, why hide in the shadows? The Nether Sea Spirit and the Red Crow King are weak right now. If you don't strike now, are you waiting for them to devour the gods of the Destiny Temple, recover from their injuries, and then make your move?"
Earlier, Zhang Ruochen had called out to the Dark Venerable Lord and the Fourth Confucian Ancestor. The Nether Sea Spirit and the Red Crow King had only half-believed him, thinking he was setting up a deception.
Moreover, at that time, they were at their peak, with formation support and Nether soldiers and generals at their command. They had not taken the cultivators hiding in the shadows seriously.
But now, things were different.
In their current state, bullying the gods of the Destiny Temple was fine, but facing any Half-Ancestor, they would only have the option to flee.
The Dark Remnant appeared in the shattered first layer of the Celestial World, holding the Thunder God Hammer. Laughter came from its abdomen: "Such keen perception! I had just begun to activate the Thunder God Hammer, and you already noticed."
The Nether Sea Spirit and the Red Crow King's expressions changed simultaneously. They immediately joined forces and then entered the Eighteen Layers of Nether Purgatory.
The Nether Sea Spirit said, "Congratulations, Venerable Lord, on seizing the Celestial World left by the Immovable Bright King Great Venerable. After reclaiming the Dark Hand, the Ancestor realm is surely within reach."
Chi Yao was naturally worried that the Dark Remnant would first break into the Celestial World to retrieve the Dark Hand. So, she raised her voice again: "At a time like this, Senior Confucian Ancestor, will you continue to wait?"
On one of the broken continental plates of the Nether Kingdom, a thunder altar surged with sacred light, illuminating the dark void of the universe.
The aura of righteous energy filled heaven and earth.
An old man in a green Confucian robe stood outside the thunder altar, his face clear and refined. He said calmly, "The Twenty-Seven Layer Celestial World is the legacy left by the Great Venerable for the creatures of the Kunlun Realm. It belongs to the Zhang family. No one can take it."
Space fell silent.
For a moment, no one dared to act rashly.
The Nether Sea Spirit and the Red Crow King felt the urge to retreat, wanting to let the green-robed old man and the Dark Remnant fight each other to the death first, so they could reap the benefits later.
But they also worried that if they chose to retreat, the green-robed old man and the Dark Remnant would first join forces against them.
Just then, a crisp and melodious phoenix cry broke the deadlock.
The cry came from within the Divine Parasol Tree.
Then, strands of flame pierced through the tree's body, seeping out.
The trunk of the Divine Parasol Tree burned. The flames were terrifying, containing Ancestor might, burning through three realms to form a splendid and beautiful fire cloud.
"It's the Hall Master! Has the Hall Master succeeded? Has she successfully subdued the Divine Parasol Tree?"
"What terrifying flames! Are these the Demon Ancestor's ancestral flames that burned the Chongming Ancestor to death?"
"Heaven has not abandoned our Destiny Temple!"
...
The gods rejoiced, their excitement overflowing.
Though the ancestral flames were terrifying, they seemed to contain the energy of life.
The vegetation on the Demon Ancestor Ridge, which had been destroyed in the Ancestor battle's aftermath, grew back from the soil, sprouting, branching, flowering, and bearing fruit.
The roots of the Divine Parasol Tree simultaneously anchored into the Demon Ancestor Ridge and the Lihentian.
At this moment, it was frantically absorbing the Ancestor divine energy and Ancestor rules from the earth veins of the Demon Ancestor Ridge, as well as the power of "Quantity" from the Lihentian.
Chi Yao raised her head, gazing at the tall and lush Divine Parasol Tree, and murmured to herself, "This doesn't seem like merely subduing the Divine Parasol Tree. Could it be that she is condensing ancestral flames, absorbing the divine energy and rules left by the Demon Ancestor? Is she going to become the Demon Ancestor of this era?"
"Feng Caiyi is indeed the Demon Ancestor's second life! If you want to become the Demon Ancestor, you must first pass through us."
The Nether Sea Spirit continued, "Both of you, how about we first kill Feng Caiyi and the other ants, and then settle our own scores? I believe you don't want to see a variable like the Demon Ancestor appear either, do you?"
The gods of the Destiny Temple all cursed the Nether Sea Spirit inwardly. Its intentions were too malicious. If the Fourth Confucian Ancestor and the Dark Remnant agreed, they would be doomed!
"Whoosh!"
On the Demon Ancestor Ridge, near the Divine Parasol Tree, ripples appeared in space, one after another.
Zhang Ruochen stepped on the Sundial, his expression somber, floating out. He seemed lost in thought, or perhaps immersed in some emotion, saying nothing.
But just by standing there silently, his presence caused the attitudes of all parties to undergo earth-shattering changes.
This was the deterrent power of a Half-Ancestor!
After a long time, Zhang Ruochen finally spoke: "Venerable Lord, Confucian Ancestor, I propose that we first strike down the Nether Sea Spirit and the Red Crow King. Do you agree?"
"Woof!"
The Golden Lion Ancestor's bark and Half-Ancestor aura came faintly from the depths of the Nether Kingdom, as if responding to Zhang Ruochen.
From the direction of the sound, golden light illuminated the horizon, dispersing the Nether energy.
At the brightest point of the golden light, the Sword Source Divine Tree grew from the ground. At the same time, Void Heaven's aura, which had been weak, grew step by step, even surpassing its former self.
At this moment, the sound of swords resounded across the world!