“Caiyun…” His voice was as hoarse as before, but it carried a majesty that shook the heavens and the earth. His fingertips gently brushed across the old woman’s face, and the wrinkles turned into spots of light and dissipated in his palm. “You are still as stupid as you were back then.”

The old woman smiled, her smile was like the girl who stole his wild fruits on the road to Beijing four thousand years ago: “Brother Taixu, you finally woke up.” Her body gradually became transparent, but before disappearing, she stuffed something into his hand, “This is… the hairpin you gave me that year… I never dared to wear it… I was afraid that my master would find out…”

Jiang Taixu looked at the jade hairpin in his hand, and suddenly remembered that year in the peach forest, when he used his spiritual energy to condense this hairpin, and her face was as red as a ripe peach. Bitterness suddenly rose in his throat. He knew that she was burning the last of her essence, but he couldn’t stop it – because he had done the same thing outside the holy land that year, and burned half of his life to protect her.

“Roar!”

Nine little dragons suddenly rose into the air, condensing into a huge dragon-shaped shadow behind Jiang Taixu. He stood up, and the water in the pool slid off his body, revealing a body covered with scars but still standing tall. The dragon patterns on the wheel sea shone brightly, and each one carried a devastating pressure.

“Four thousand years…” He looked at the thirteen mighty ones in the air, his voice calm but making everyone’s heart stop, “You have really grown up, daring to join forces to block my underground palace.” He raised his hand and waved it lightly, and the Hengyu Divine Furnace suddenly erupted with a thousand-foot-high divine fire, directly melting through the falling bronze ancient ship, “The rats that were not killed back then, have now become powerful?”

The leader of the Blood River Cult frantically urged the White Bone Banner: “Everyone join forces! He has just revived, and his divine essence is unstable–” Before he finished speaking, he saw Jiang Taixu raise his hand and clench it, and the jade disc in his hand shattered into powder, “Ah! My life-definition magic weapon–“

The Dark Night King’s Yin Yang Sword suddenly wailed. The Yin Yang fish pattern on the sword was disintegrating. He was horrified to find that his connection with the sword was being severed: “You…you broke through?!”

Jiang Taixu glanced at him, his eyes fell on the bronze mask on his face: “Back then, outside the Wanchu Holy Land, you used forbidden techniques to steal one-third of the power of the Yin-Yang Emperor.” He stepped into the air, leaving golden footprints in the air with every step, “Now… it’s time to pay it back.”

The battle ended more suddenly than it began. When Jiang Taixu placed his palm on the mask of the Dark Night King, the whole world seemed to stand still. The Yin-Yang Sword fell to the ground with a mournful cry, and the arrogant strong man knelt down trembling like a mortal.

“Get lost.” Jiang Taixu let go of his hand and turned to walk towards the underground palace. The thirteen great men looked at each other, and no one dared to move. It was not until his figure disappeared into the crack that someone dared to let out the first gasp.

By the Hualong Pond, Jiang Taixu gently put the old woman’s body down. Her face was as peaceful as sleep, as if the wind and frost of four thousand years had never eroded her. He held the jade hairpin and suddenly smiled. There was bitterness, longing, and four thousand years of regret in his smile.

“Master.” Jiang Yifei knelt down and kowtowed, his eyes filled with excitement. “Grandmaster, Fairy Caiyun…”

“I know.” Jiang Taixu reached out and stroked the old woman’s hair, gently inserting the jade hairpin into her temples, “She has gone to where she should go.” He looked up at the cracks on the top of the underground palace, where the sun was shining through the clouds, “Notify the Jiang family members to open the ancestral hall in three days.” His voice suddenly became low, “I want to personally burn a stick of incense for Caiyun…”

High in the sky, Ye Fan looked at the gradually dispersing clouds, and suddenly saw a colorful stream of light rising from the direction of the underground palace and drifting towards the direction of Wanchu Holy Land. Duan De came over, spinning the wine gourd in his hand: “Is that… the soul of Fairy Caiyun?”

“No.” Ye Fan shook his head. “That was her longing for four thousand years. She can finally return to the snow-capped mountains of Wanchu Holy Land to see the scenery that she didn’t dare to see all those years ago.”

Black Emperor suddenly jumped onto Ye Fan’s shoulder: “Meow, I’m so tired!” He swung his tail and suddenly caught a glimpse of the jade hairpin in Jiang Taixu’s hand, “Hey, old thing, can you lend me that hairpin?…” Before he could finish his words, he was swept away by a golden light.

Jiang Taixu turned and walked into the Hualong Pond, and the water in the pond began to boil again. When his figure completely sank into the water, a line of small words suddenly appeared at the bottom of the pond, written in blood: “Brother Taixu, in the next life… I will be the one to find you.”

The wind blew in from the cracks in the underground palace, bringing with it the chill of the snow-capped mountains in the distance. The Jiang family members knelt by the pool, listening to the sound of the battle above their heads gradually subsiding, knowing that the era of the God King was about to begin again. And the story of the old woman, along with the legend of the God King, will forever remain in the ballads of the East Wasteland.

On the surface of the Hualong Pond, the milky white spring suddenly rippled with blood-red ripples. Fairy Caiyun’s body slowly sank like a fallen petal, her withered palm still on Jiang Taixu’s cheek, her knuckles white from exerting force. Her hair had lost its last bit of luster, drifting away like weathered cotton wool, only the cinnabar mole between her eyebrows still retained the beauty of four thousand years ago.

“Brother Taixu, you found the Earth Origin Fruit for me in the past to replenish my lifespan. You asked me to live with you for four thousand years and die together in this world.” The old woman’s voice was like petals scattered on the water, broken and soft. “I have waited for you… but unfortunately… I can’t see you resurrect with my own eyes.”

The Jiang family’s great elders formed a circle and used their bodies to block the sword light from the Yin-Yang Sword. The light of the Hengyu Divine Furnace flickered behind them, but it could not illuminate the old woman’s gradually dimming eyes. When the last bit of spiritual power was injected into Jiang Taixu’s body, Fairy Caiyun’s body suddenly shrank, like a dry branch that had been drained of water. Only the smile at the corner of her lips still solidified the unfinished attachment.

“If time could go back four thousand five hundred years, Brother Taixu… I would go with you… instead of staying in the Holy Land…” Her fingers brushed across the corners of Jiang Taixu’s tightly closed eyes, and his cloudy pupils suddenly glowed. “After I die… I will cover my body with a white cloth, and tell Brother Taixu… not to uncover it to see me… I don’t want him to see… me like this now. I want him to always remember… me four thousand years ago.”

The last word disappeared in the ripples of the sacred spring. The old woman’s head drooped weakly, and her white hair scattered on Jiang Taixu’s chest like a piece of withered snow. A supreme elder trembled and closed her eyelids, but found that she was still holding a half-broken jade pendant in her palm – it was a token of love that Jiang Taixu had carved for her four thousand years ago.

“Senior Caiyun!” The cries of the young Jiang family members were drowned out by the loud noise of the battle spears. When the lightning of Jiang Han and his group exploded above the Hualong Pond, the attacks of thirteen powerful beings were tearing the void above the underground palace into pieces. A gap was cut in Jiang Yi’s bloody flag, and only the last glimmer of light of Emperor Hengyu’s array pattern remained on the battle spear of the Jiang family patriarch.

“Yifei! Who is this?” The Jiang family’s great elders looked at the figure that walked out of the lightning, their trembling voices carrying the last hope. When they recognized Jiang Han, they clasped their dry palms in front of their chests, and tears welled up in their turbid eyes: “Senior Hongjun, I beg you to save Fairy Caiyun and Ancestor Shenwang!”

In the center of the battlefield, Jiang Yi’s bloody flag suddenly froze. He had heard the legend in the Northern Territory – the mysterious strong man who could withstand the attacks of the six extreme imperial soldiers was standing by the Hualong Pond at this moment, and the lightning patterns on his robe echoed with the Hengyu Divine Furnace. The attacks of the thirteen powerful men automatically dissipated three feet away from Jiang Han, as if they had touched an invisible barrier. “Ancestor, can she still be saved?” Ji Ziyue pulled Jiang Han’s sleeve and looked at the shrunken body in the pool. The girl’s purple skirt was still stained with the dust of the ancient forbidden land, but at this moment it was cleaner than ever – because she knew that some partings could not be reversed even by thunder tribulations.

Jiang Han shook his head silently. Deep in his sea of ​​consciousness, the fragments of the Chaos Green Lotus were slightly hot, but they could not condense even a trace of life force. When his eyes fell on the fragments of the jade pendant on Jiang Taixu’s chest, he suddenly remembered the peach blossoms on Jingxiu Peak four thousand years ago – at that time, Jiang Taixu was dressed in white clothes, holding a freshly picked Diyuan fruit in his arms, and the smile of Fairy Caiyun was reflected in his eyes.

“He’s awake.” Jiang Han’s voice was interrupted by a sad roar.

At the bottom of the Hualong Pond, Jiang Taixu’s eyelashes suddenly trembled. A crystal teardrop rolled down from the corner of his dry eye, hitting the surface of the sacred spring, stirring up a water column a meter high. His eyelids slowly opened, and the withered face of Fairy Caiyun was reflected in his eyes, but it was as if he saw the morning mist of Jingxiu Peak four thousand years ago – at that time, she was holding up the peach blossoms she had just picked, running towards him with a smile.

“Colorful clouds…”

The voice of the God King echoed over the God City like a rusty string. His palm stroked the old woman’s white hair, and his fingertips touched the peach petals hidden in her hair – those were the petals she had collected every spring for four thousand years. They had long been dried, but still retained a faint fragrance.

The next moment, Jiang Taixu suddenly stood up. His body had not yet fully recovered, and the bones under his skin were clearly visible, but it seemed as if there were thousands of golden lights wandering in his body. The nine little dragons in the sacred spring suddenly flew into the air, surrounding him in a phantom of nine dragons carrying a coffin, and the dragons’ eyes reflected the dying smile of Fairy Caiyun.

“what–!”

The mournful roar resounded through the sky, and the bronze walls of the divine city collapsed. The thirteen powerful men who were fighting with the Jiang family suddenly felt an invisible pressure, and the magic weapons in their hands trembled. The operator of the Yin-Yang Divine Sword was shocked to find that his imperial weapon was actually wailing – that was the submission to the true emperor.

“Is he really alive?” A powerful man’s voice was trembling. He saw Jiang Taixu floating above the Hualong Pond, with the shadow of Emperor Hengyu emerging behind him, holding up the body of Fairy Caiyun with both hands, as if holding up the weight of the whole world.

Jiang Taixu’s eyes swept across the sky and fell on the operator of the Yin-Yang Sword. There was no anger in those eyes, only endless sadness, which made all the powerful men feel a piercing chill – those were eyes that had experienced a thousand years of loneliness, sharper than any magic weapon.

“It’s too late.” Jiang Han’s sigh was drowned out by the roar of the divine spring. He saw Jiang Taixu lower his head and kiss the old woman’s forehead, his fingertips gently closing her eyelids, his movements were so gentle that it seemed like he was touching the most precious treasure. Then, the body of the God King began to swell, his dry muscles filled up at a speed visible to the naked eye, and his silver hair gradually turned black, turning into long black hair that covered his shoulders.

The essence of heaven and earth poured into the city like a hundred rivers flowing into the sea. A roar came from the ancient forbidden land in the distance, and nine dragon breaths rose from the depths of the forbidden land and merged into Jiang Taixu’s body. The fragment of the jade pendant on his chest suddenly glowed, resonating with the Hengyu Divine Furnace and the Yin-Yang Divine Sword, spelling out the word “eternity” in the void.

“God King Ancestor, please accept my condolences.” The Jiang family’s great elders prostrated themselves on the ground, not daring to look directly at the figure that was gradually regaining its dignity. They saw Jiang Taixu put the body of Fairy Caiyun into the Dragon Transformation Pond, using the divine spring to condense it into an ice coffin, with the half jade pendant pinned between her hair, as if she was just asleep.

“Caiyun…” Jiang Taixu’s voice was as light as a feather, but it was heard by all the cultivators in the entire Divine City. He raised his head and glanced at the thirteen powerful men. His grief finally turned into murderous intent: “Who of you took the lead?”

The strong man who controlled the Yin-Yang Sword suddenly felt a palpitation. He wanted to speak, but found that his throat was pinched by an invisible big hand. Jiang Taixu flicked his fingertips lightly, and the Yin-Yang Sword wailed, and a crack appeared on the sword body – that was the first time the imperial soldier was injured.

“It’s been four thousand years,” Jiang Taixu walked in the air, leaving the footprints of Emperor Hengyu in the air with every step, “I thought time could teach some people to be reverent, but it turns out that greed always lasts longer than time.”

The thirteen powerful men looked at each other and finally realized that the person in front of them was not an old man who was on the verge of death, but the real God King – the ancient genius of the Jiang family who once made the entire Beidou tremble, and now he was returning to the world with four thousand years of loneliness and anger.

“Let’s go together!” Someone shouted, but even he couldn’t hear the sound clearly. Their magic weapons were shaking, and the sea of ​​​​wheels was boiling, but they couldn’t resist the golden light in Jiang Taixu’s eyes – that was the fighting sacred law inherited by Emperor Hengyu, which was resonating with his ancient holy body at this moment.

Jiang Taixu raised his hand, and the ice coffin in the holy spring automatically floated behind him. He looked at the operator of the Yin-Yang Sword and whispered, “Do you know? Caiyun is most afraid of pain.”

The next moment, the world lost its color. Hengyu Divine Furnace and Yin-Yang Divine Sword cried at the same time, and the brilliance of the two imperial weapons merged in the hands of the God King, turning into a golden sword light. The attacks of the thirteen powerful men were like ice and snow meeting the sun, melting in an instant.

Jiang Han stood by the Hualong Pond, watching Jiang Taixu’s back gradually grow taller. He knew that some partings would make heroes stronger, and some regrets would make the inheritance heavier. When the sword of the God King flashed across the sky, he heard Ji Ziyue ask softly: “Ancestor, can gods also shed tears?”

“Yes,” Jiang Han looked at Fairy Caiyun sleeping peacefully in the ice coffin, and thought of his past in Xuanhuang Continent, “It is because she can shed tears that she is a true fairy.”

The night sky of the God City finally showed the light of dawn. Jiang Taixu held the ice coffin and walked towards the Jiang Family Ancestral Hall. His steps were heavy but firm, and every step told of four thousand years of waiting and loss. Behind him, the light of the Hengyu God Furnace illuminated the entire God City, and also illuminated the peach blossom in Fairy Caiyun’s hair that never faded.

In the night sky of the God City, a blood moon was like a disk, covering the entire city in a strange red halo. By the Hualong Pond, Ji Ziyue’s purple skirt rustled in the night wind. Her beautiful eyes were full of pity. She looked at Jiang Han and whispered, “Ancestor, this Jiang family God King is so pitiful.” (End of this chapter)