Emperor Fu Zhao truly entered his twilight years.
At the age of eight thousand, his temples bore white hair that could not be reversed.
This was unimaginable for a Human Emperor.
Chen Jiuyang, immersed in his cultivation, was only vaguely aware of Emperor Fu Zhao's visit through a sliver of his true spirit.
Another two thousand years passed.
Wails and cries echoed across the universe.
Following this,
The universe experienced intense tremors, revealing thirty-three celestial phenomena, and blood rained down from all directions.
"Emperor Fu Zhao... has passed away..."
All paths disintegrated!!!
The various phenomena persisted for a year before finally dissipating.
Chen Jiuyang had long since been awakened, a hint of sorrow in his eyes: "In-law, fare thee well..."
He admitted frankly that he was no match for Emperor Fu Zhao.
For the sake of his family, he chose to live in seclusion in Crippled Old Village, forging a different path to enlightenment.
This was perhaps the destined fate of the inheritor of the Human Emperor's path.
Thus, the golden age, which had begun with Chen Jiuyang's triumphant rise, started to wither, heading towards the end of this grand era.
He very much wished to visit the Small Immortal Realm to see the Fu family, to see if anyone would emerge after Emperor Fu Zhao's passing.
However, Emperor Fu Zhao had left him a message: he had left a complete Great Emperor killing formation and peak Emperor artifacts in the Fu family of Zhongzhou, sufficient to protect the Fu family for fifty thousand years without harm.
Moreover, he could not leave Crippled Old Village.
Although he sensed that a Human Emperor's path inheritor had been born in the golden great age, the other party had not yet arrived at Crippled Old Village.
He was the inheritor of the Human Emperor's path in the era of the end of Dharma, and after he went into seclusion in Crippled Old Village, a Human Emperor's path inheritor would naturally be born in the golden great age.
The great age was gradually withering; for the next tens of thousands of years, martial arts might not be glorious, and it would be a period dominated by immortal cultivators.
"Perhaps I have another thousand years to cultivate, and then I will have to enter a deep slumber..."
Another eight hundred years passed, and the great age was truly about to dissipate.
On this day, Village Chief 'Eight Difficulties' appeared before Chen Jiuyang. Chen Jiuyang also looked up towards the outside of Crippled Old Village and said to 'Eight Difficulties': "Village Chief, is the inheritor of this generation about to arrive?"
Village Chief 'Eight Difficulties' looked at Chen Jiuyang with surprise: "It seems your cultivation has grown very quickly; you can sense it."
"Activate your Martial Dao Furnace, and let me see what your cultivation is like now," said Village Chief 'Eight Difficulties'.
After stepping onto the path to the Celestial Platform, martial artists had to activate their Martial Dao Furnace to glimpse the level they had reached on the path to the Celestial Platform.
Chen Jiuyang said with a smile: "That's not important. Why don't you come with me to meet that person?"
Village Chief 'Eight Difficulties' rolled her eyes at Chen Jiuyang: "Why are you so annoying, just like Qin Shujian."
"So young."
"Am I still young?" Chen Jiuyang's eyes flickered: "I seem to be already eight thousand nine hundred and thirty-eight years old..."
'Eight Difficulties' said: "Let's go."
Having spent thousands of years in Crippled Old Village, Chen Jiuyang had gradually figured out the rules of this forbidden area. If an outsider entered Crippled Old Village, the day and night would reset, with night as the starting point.
Chen Jiuyang and Village Chief 'Eight Difficulties' left the village and headed towards the direction outside Crippled Old Village.
It was still daytime, but soon, they arrived at the forest on this side of the river. Chen Jiuyang clearly felt a restrictive force within Crippled Old Village, preventing him from leaving unless someone from the current mortal world came to take him away.
He could also sense that even if he found a way to leave Crippled Old Village, the mortal world would not readily accept him.
Chen Jiuyang's gaze was complex; he was no longer recognized by the current world, not being of this generation.
After waiting for a while, a middle-aged man in armor, wielding a saber and covered in blood, arrived on the opposite side of the river. A sense of inexplicable closeness emanated from him.
"Indeed, he is the inheritor of the Human Emperor's path in this generation."
'Eight Difficulties' spoke.
The middle-aged man, clad in armor and covered in blood, his eyes filled with pain, confusion, and complexity, looked towards the forest on the Crippled Old Village side: "I am being hunted from heaven and earth, and my only sliver of hope lies in Crippled Old Village."
"I heard that thousands of years ago, Demon Lord Qianyang entered Crippled Old Village and went into seclusion, and his news has not been heard of since."
"If not for Emperor Fu Zhao's declaration that the Emperor's son would have a marriage contract with Demon Lord Qianyang's daughter, everyone would have thought Demon Lord Qianyang was dead."
As he stepped onto the riverbank, he saw a young girl and a young man wearing white bamboo-patterned robes standing in the forest on the opposite bank. His pupils suddenly contracted:
"Demon Lord Qianyang!!!"
"He is indeed still alive! I truly still have a way out!"
His heart skipped a beat.
Behind him came a chilling killing intent, the pressure of Martial Saints and Dao Integration stage cultivators.
He was like Chen Jiuyang back then, only at the early stage of the Emperor realm, able to contend with them with the fortune of being an inheritor of the Human Emperor's path, but ultimately no match.
But now, at the peak of prosperity and decline, with luck arriving from the extreme of yin, he was alone and at his wit's end.
Without hesitation, his figure instantly surged forward, leaping across the river.
He reached the side of the forest in Crippled Old Village.
"Greetings, Senior Demon Lord Qianyang!"
"This junior is Zhang Guanjie!"
Chen Jiuyang slowly nodded, his gaze falling on Zhang Guanjie: "Your timing is not too late."
On the opposite bank of the river, several Martial Saints, Dao Integration stage, and Tribulation Crossing stage cultivators appeared.
A Dao Integration stage cultivator attempted to cross the river.
That Martial Saint immediately spoke: "Stop, do not cross the river."
The Dao Integration stage cultivator looked confused: "Martial Uncle, why is that?"
These several Martial Saints and Tribulation Crossing stage cultivators showed deep apprehension: "Don't you see? Demon Lord Qianyang, who went into seclusion in Crippled Old Village thousands of years ago, is standing opposite?"
"Demon Lord Qianyang?" The Dao Integration stage cultivator was first confused, then his expression trembled as he recalled: "The current master of the Chongming Sea Holy Master?"
"That's right," the Martial Saint and Tribulation Crossing stage cultivators said with great apprehension: "The current Chongming Sea Holy Master is at the end of his martial path and has decided to switch to immortal cultivation, while his master, Demon Lord Qianyang, has not changed his appearance from back then..."
"This is a top prodigy from our era... the one who suppressed all the prodigies of that era..."
"Eight thousand eight hundred years have passed since that era... If Demon Lord Qianyang were dead, there would be nothing to fear, but now, his appearance is the same as when I saw him from afar, and there is no aura of an immortal cultivator on him."
The Tribulation Crossing stage cultivator and the Martial Saints both took a deep breath, their apprehension growing even stronger:
"Let's retreat. Zhang Guanjie has fled into the forbidden area of Crippled Old Village, which we cannot kill."
"Emperor Fu Zhao has fallen, and the next tens of thousands of years will be the era of our immortal path. Even Demon Lord Qianyang and Zhang Guanjie will have to drink in regret through the years."
These several people showed unwillingness and turned to leave.
Village Chief 'Eight Difficulties' settled Zhang Guanjie into her own village.
Chen Jiuyang continued to return to the divine spring to cultivate.
Another one hundred and eighty years passed.
A deep sense of fatigue washed over him.
Chen Jiuyang understood: "Has the time come..."
The golden great age had completely ended, the disintegration of all paths intensified, and Crippled Old Village fell into eternal, endless darkness.
Chen Jiuyang also followed this feeling and fell into a long slumber.