Chapter 480
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Translator: Ace
Chapter: [?]
Chapter Title: Hero at the End of His Road
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At this moment, Hongyun's mind was in utter collapse.
Who could know the torment he'd endured these past days? He'd been minding his own business at home when some mysterious bastard came knocking with murderous intent.
Back in the day, he could've snuffed the guy out with a single breath.
But now? Forget snuffing him out—he'd been beaten so badly he fled like a rat, and worse, the assailant had permanently stripped him of his innate divine ability!
What the hell was the point of seeking Gold anymore?
Just as Hongyun was about to secretly contact Hongju to track down that despicable sneak attacker and settle the score, another piece of devastating news hit him:
Heavy Light led the way, and Perfected Being Clear Snow Flying struck. In the Jiangnan Gantang Dao, that Cavern Heaven fragment he'd pinned all his hopes on—which he'd held off claiming only out of fear it might be a trap—was destroyed. It shattered any chance he had of perfecting his Foundation Establishment, refining a Blessed Land, or even returning his Gold to position.
What was left to play for?
In total despair, Hongyun finally recalled his last contingency, the [Seven Luminaries Heaven], and with no other choice, he abandoned his home.
But he never imagined:
"[Seven Luminaries Heaven] is gone?!"
In the outer heavens' sea of light, Hongyun's face twisted, his aura surging wildly, his steel-like teeth nearly grinding to dust. "Who... who the fuck is plotting against me!"
Back in the day, how glorious he'd been?
Bearer of Heaven and Earth's fortune, witness to Covered Lamp Fire, and he'd timed it perfectly with the great heavenly tribulation, raking in gains until his coffers overflowed. Even among Perfected Beings, he'd stood out!
But damn his luck!
How had he ended up like this?
For the first time, Hongyun couldn't suppress a wave of reflection. He hadn't looked back before, but now that he did, it chilled him to the bone.
'How did I die?'
Five thousand years, and because of some [Cognitive Obstruction], he'd completely overlooked "how he died," single-mindedly chasing Gold's return.
Now, amid this emotional rollercoaster, reflection hit—and suddenly, the fog lifted from his eyes. "Son of a bitch! Someone screwed me over! And here I thought I'd just grown old and run out of luck—turns out there was a rat in the shadows!"
"[Angxiao]!!!"
It was him! He'd never forget that crushing terror. That damn [Great Forest Wood]... the bastard hadn't died, and now he was at mid-Golden Core!
And his Dao attainments were sky-high!
High Dao, high cultivation, supreme fruition—and yet the guy chose the end of the millennium tribulation to ambush a mere early-Golden Core like him in the chaos.
'What a beast!'
Hongyun's hands trembled. What grudge did he have against [Angxiao]? They were both Primal Saint Sect Perfected Beings—weren't they on the same side?
'Unless... it was about the Dao path!'
Hongyun's mind raced, piecing it together. Among Primal Saint Sect Perfected Beings, what else could turn allies into enemies but their paths?
The next instant, Hongyun despaired even more.
Because [Angxiao] had already killed him five thousand years ago. If it was truly for the Dao path, then the bastard had probably succeeded by now.
'Mid-Golden Core? Too optimistic.'
'[Angxiao] is likely late-Golden Core now, a Great Perfected Being! It took me five thousand years without repositioning Gold—maybe he's the one sabotaging me!'
And now, even his final fallback was gone.
Hongyun looked up, tears streaming wordlessly.
A hero's end!
If not for my fortune scattering and that petty [Angxiao] targeting me, how could I suffer defeat after defeat, waste five thousand years, and become the laughingstock of all Perfected Beings?
For five thousand years, they've mocked me behind my back, yet I've endured.
I've waited five thousand years for a chance—to catch my breath, not to prove I'm great, but to reclaim what was taken!
But now, forget reclaiming anything—I've got no retreat left. First half of life in splendor, second half in rags.
"Not my fault in battle..."
Hongyun let out a long sigh, endless sorrow. The next second, something seemed to strike him; his eyes sharpened. Without a word, he summoned escape light, racing back toward the Jiangbei lands.
But as he neared that ruined place, thick golden light suddenly spread from all sides, sealing heaven and earth like a city wall, barring him outside. Amid the golden glow, a figure emerged, standing firm in [Two Polarities Birth-Death Profound Light], a smile on his face:
"Senior Hongyun, this junior has been waiting for you."
It was Lu Yang!
Not his true body—his true body had returned to Jiangdong with Emperor Jiayou. This was his Immortal Embryo clone, eyes fixed keenly on Hongyun.
How had he tracked Hongyun?
Simple enough. He still held Hongyun's Chen-Earth divine ability [Root of All Things]. Following that trail, pinning down Hongyun's location was child's play.
Seeing this, Hongyun showed no surprise, his mind crystal clear. "Mess with my mind, cut my retreat, lure me to the outer heavens where [Netherworld] can't reach—so I can't escape, and you can kill me? [Angxiao], you've gone too far!"
Lu Yang: "?"
Faced with Hongyun's furious tirade, Lu Yang blinked but didn't argue, just smiled faintly. "Senior, you're mistaken. This junior harbors no ill intent."
"No ill intent?"
Hongyun nearly laughed in rage, scanning the surroundings coldly with mockery. "If that's true, why set up this dragnet here to wait for me?"
Lu Yang stood with hands clasped, firing back smoothly: "Can that compare?"
Before the words finished, the Myriad Spirits Banner materialized behind him, fluttering in the wind:
"Besides, Senior, you're far too slippery. This junior had no choice but this desperate measure, hoping only to invite you into my banner for some hospitality."
Hongyun's eye twitched at the words.
Such pompous, utterly shameless rhetoric—from Sword Pavilion?
Wait, wasn't it [Angxiao]?
For a moment, Hongyun was baffled... But setting that aside, he still sensed thick danger from the Myriad Spirits Banner behind Lu Yang.
"To the death, then?" Hongyun gritted out.
"Senior jests."
Seeing Hongyun's bluster masking weakness, Lu Yang smiled. "Even if the fish dies, the net won't break. Best not waste effort probing for a way to break the array in secret."
Lu Yang saw right through Hongyun's feigned argument while secretly hunting for an escape, so Hongyun dropped the act. He drew a deep breath, resolve flashing in his eyes as thunderous words boomed: "Fine then—time to see what you're made of!"
The words fell, thunder roared.
In an instant, the outer heavens' light sea quaked. Winds rose from nowhere—murky gray, oppressively dark, wailing with ghosts and gods, clashing like myriad steel blades!
[Fear of the Ax]!
"Clang clang!"
The gale swept in, blotting the sky. Lu Yang glanced once and understood: 'Got smarter this time—no Jia Wood, switched to Yi Wood!'
What was [Fear of the Ax]?
Yi Wood: wind in heaven, trees on earth—deep roots, lush leaves, living wood. Living wood fears Yang Metal's chopping, dreads autumn's fall and withering.
The divine ability's gale pressed down like axes and blades, assaulting Lu Yang's body. His divine abilities' glow stilled, then cracked inch by inch, vast swaths of divine light shaved off, scattering beautifully—enough to furrow Lu Yang's brow:
'A Perfected Being reborn, after all.'
'With intel on my lineage, he's adapted with method—much trickier now. Good thing I stripped one of his innate divine abilities earlier.'
But the more so, the firmer Lu Yang's resolve.
After all, Hongyun's Gold nature tied to his grand Dao plans—no backing down.
Today, he would take this man!