246: An Age Without Saints! (Forty-Five)

An unknown realm that did not belong to the Ten Directions Ancient World.

This place was shrouded in immortal mist, where the Laws of the Great Dao were complete and clear, far beyond what the withered minor worlds outside could compare to.

Inside an ancient divine temple floating above a sea of clouds, a middle-aged man with a profound aura suddenly opened his eyes.

He seemed to have sensed something and instantly flew into a rage.

“Ancient Ancestor!”

His voice penetrated the layers of Restrictions in the temple, reaching into the deepest depths of Chaos.

“The last remaining Qi of the Heavenly Dao has been intercepted by someone!”

The middle-aged man's voice was filled with fury.

“It was one thing for the 'seed' nurtured for ten thousand years from the fragment of the Heavenly Dao you borrowed from the heavens to be taken away. But now, even the Qi of the Heavenly Dao meant to nurture Hong'er's remnant body and allow him to live another life has been stolen!”

“This is intolerable!”

From the depths of Chaos within the temple, an aged and majestic voice slowly spoke with a calm tone.

“If that is the case, then bring Hong'er back.”

“We can only take that path now.”

Hearing this, the middle-aged man's expression changed.

“That path? Ancient Ancestor! That path... even if Hong'er is only a remnant body now, he won't be able to withstand it!”

The aged voice remained calm.

“It is the only way.”

The middle-aged man instantly understood something, his voice becoming dry.

“You mean... self-severance?”

“Whether Hong'er can achieve an alternative Dao depends on his own fortune hereafter.”

The aged voice carried a sense of vicissitude and... helplessness.

“It is truly laughable. A pair of peerless Heavy Pupils, a Great Emperor who had just attained the Dao and should have suppressed an era with infinite glory... was actually heavily wounded by a madman from nowhere, and then carved up by those rats of the Ten Directions Ancient World.”

“It is truly an 'Emperor's Disgrace'.”

The middle-aged man was silent for a moment before speaking in a low voice.

“Ancient Ancestor, that madman was wielding the Legacy of that Sword Master.”

“Hong'er's defeat was not in vain.”

The aged voice did not respond to him, only asking:

“It has been tens of thousands of years. Is there any word on that madman's whereabouts?”

“Not yet,”

the middle-aged man replied respectfully.

“Since he was hunted by you into that Life Forbidden Zone in the Northern Plains of the Huangyuan Realm, his whereabouts have been unknown. I sent people to investigate; that madman only left a sword hilt in the world, which seems to possess only the aura of a Quasi-Supreme.”

...Meanwhile.

Within the chaotic turbulence of space.

Gu Yun used his power as a Venerable to forcibly protect the survivors of the Chi and Gu clans.

The passage he had personally torn open was inherently unstable.

At this moment, it was twisting and vibrating violently.

“Hold on tight!”

Gu Yun gave a low shout.

Boom!

A violent spatial storm slammed into them, and the passage completely collapsed... Central State.

The Black Cloud Mountain Range, one of the core battlefields of the immortal war between the three families that had lasted for decades.

The sounds of shouting and killing shook the sky, and the smell of blood was pungent.

This was the meat grinder for the Gu Family and the allied forces of the Ji and Wang families.

The continuous flames of war had lasted for ten years, and both sides were seeing red.

But at this moment, the situation was extremely unfavorable for the Gu Family.

Because the Heavenly Dao was withering, the Saint Realm experts and most Venerables of both sides were pinned down and could not easily make a move.

The Ji and Wang families had somehow invited mysterious external reinforcements, gaining an absolute advantage on the Venerable-level battlefield.

High in the sky, Laws collided and divine light was annihilated.

An old man wearing the robes of a Gu Family Grand Elder was covered in blood, his aura withered.

The life-bound Dao sword in his hand had long since broken into several pieces.

Opposite him were three enemy Venerables with equally powerful auras.

They formed a triangle, surrounding the Gu Family Elder tightly with playful and cruel expressions.

“Gu Changqing, do you still intend to put up a cornered fight?”

A Venerable from the Wang Family sneered.

“Before long, your Gu Family will surely perish!”

Gu Changqing was one of the Venerables of the Gu Family fighting abroad, highly respected.

At this moment, he was at the end of his rope.

He glanced at the Gu Family clansmen below who were retreating in defeat with heavy casualties, his eyes sorrowful and determined.

“The sons of my Gu Family are no cowards!”

“If you want to destroy my Gu Family, you'll have to step over this old man's corpse!”

Gu Changqing roared, actually intending to burn his Dao Fruit for a final desperate struggle.

“Hahaha! Want to self-detonate? Too late!”

The Ji Family Venerable laughed, and the three of them struck simultaneously. Three destructive torrents of Laws slammed toward Gu Changqing from three directions.

All the Gu Family members below saw this scene and were filled with grief and indignation.

“Elder!”

Despair spread across the battlefield.

However, at this critical juncture.

Rumble!

The sky above their heads was torn open by a domineering force without any warning, creating a massive rift.

Immediately following that.

Hundreds of figures fell out of the crack one after another in a disheveled state.

Everyone was stunned.

Even the three enemy Venerables preparing to deliver the fatal blow to Gu Changqing subconsciously slowed their movements for a moment.

“What is that?”

Someone exclaimed.

Among the falling figures, the leader was a young man in white.

Though he also looked a bit disheveled, he was the first to steady himself.

Behind him were two groups of fierce warriors in strange attire.

Gu Yun's gaze immediately swept across the battlefield below.

He saw the familiar banners of the Gu Family, saw the clansmen fighting bloodily, and saw the Grand Elder high in the sky, surrounded by three enemies and on the verge of death.

Gu Changqing.

The name instantly surfaced in his mind.

That was one of the Elders who had watched him grow up.

Killing intent instantly appeared in Gu Yun's eyes.

“Kill!”

“Kill Gu Changqing first!”

The Wang Family Venerable was the first to react. He no longer cared about these sudden 'accidents' and once again activated his Divine Ability to completely obliterate Gu Changqing.

Gu Changqing watched the three attacks that were enough to grind him to dust, just as he was prepared to drag his remnant body into resistance.

However.

A calm yet killing-intent-filled voice rang in his ear.

“Elder, you've worked hard.”

“Leave the rest to me.”