The Exodus Begins

The Ancestral Dragon Ship drew near, and a boundless dragon aura swept across the sea, filling all who beheld it with awe. Seven-colored divine light blazed forth, illuminating the entire vast ocean. The surface of the sea became a dreamlike vision.

But the crowd was too great—this was almost like moving an entire world across the boundary. Though the Ancestral Dragon Ship was as vast as a mountain, it could not possibly accommodate the dense throng of figures that filled the sky.

The Buddha was the first to act. He chanted a single Buddha-name, and three relics appeared behind his head, bursting forth with ten thousand rays of golden light. A Pure Land materialized above him, and all the Buddhist disciples—the bodhisattvas, the five hundred arhats—flew into it.

Primordial, crowned with a purple-gold diadem and robed in a yin-yang Daoist vestment, swept his great sleeve. A gale shook the sea, and all the disciples of the Chan Sect, including the Twelve Golden Immortals, were lifted into the sky and drawn into his sleeve.

Lord Tongtian also displayed his great divine art. A giant hand tore through the void, fixing a region of space, and gathered all his disciples into a single point that flew into the Immortal-Slaying Sword Formation Diagram.

Each half-ancestor used their own powers to take in their disciples and followers into a small world. The dense crowd in the sky thinned by more than half.

“Why are there still so many?” Chiyou frowned. The number of arrivals was truly beyond imagination.

At that moment, Zhuang Zhou came, transformed into a butterfly. Its wings fluttered, sending out ripples of spiritual fluctuation. Xiao Chen and the nine half-ancestors all heard his telepathic message:

“The Ancestral God Shennong wishes to bring more people with us. No matter what happens, the Mortal World must not be destroyed.”

Hearing this, the nine half-ancestors fell silent. The Ancestral God had sensed danger and wanted to preserve the sparks of this world.

Xiao Chen frowned. He did not wish to become the sinner of the Mortal World. If disaster were drawn there, he could never atone.

As if reading his worry, Chiyou patted him on the shoulder and sent a mental message: “Do not fear. These half-ancestors all came from the Mortal World. They will not bring calamity—on the contrary, they will become its guardians.”

The crowd gradually boarded the ship along the rainbow bridge. When Yan Qingcheng flew in and saw Xiao Chen, she froze for an instant—clearly she had not expected him to still be alive. But she did not linger and quickly boarded the ship. This time, few except the half-ancestors knew why they were entering the Mortal World. Everyone boarded in heavy silence.

The mountain-like Ancestral Dragon Ship barely managed to carry away the first wave. However, Xiao Chen, Keke, the Buddha, Laozi, and Chiyou remained behind, because there was still a massive crowd to be transported, and coordination was needed.

It was truly an army. Xiao Chen had come seeking aid, never imagining it would turn into this.

He was not worried about time, because the second group would depart on the King Ship that Chiyou summoned, without waiting for the Ancestral Dragon Ship to return.

Looking back across that vast sea, piercing through layers of mist, Xiao Chen seemed to see the ancient and magnificent Eternal Continent. Even the people of the World of Immortality were entering the Mortal World—he would not need to return.

During his time in this World of Immortality, there were old friends he had yet to see. How could he forget the Little Defiant Dragon? How could the memories of King Qin Guang, King Yan Luo, and King Reincarnation fade?

“Senior, will you accompany me on a journey? I need to fetch some friends,” Xiao Chen said to Chiyou.

Since the World of Immortality might be destroyed, Xiao Chen wanted to bring the Little Defiant Dragon to the Mortal World. Going to the Southern Wastes alone to face the Old Dragon with only Keke was too dangerous—he needed to bring a half-ancestor.

“Agreed.”

The power of a half-ancestor was unquestionable. Chiyou directly tore open a spatial passage, and in almost no time, Xiao Chen and his group crossed the vast sea and arrived at the deepest part of the Southern Wastes.

For ordinary cultivators, this place was full of mystery and practically forbidden. Endless primeval mountain ranges stretched without limit, ancient forests blotted out the sky, and primordial beasts roamed everywhere, making it extremely dangerous.

Celestial music sounded, and the desolate mountains shifted. The great peaks ahead parted like gates, revealing a resplendent world. Multicolored clouds swirled, divine trees swayed, exotic flowers bloomed, waterfalls cascaded, and mist drifted. Floating jade towers hung in the air—a dreamlike scene.

This was the true dragon vein of the Southern Wastes. It was not as terrifying as outsiders imagined, but appeared as a peaceful pure land.

“Haha… honored guests have come!” The Old Dragon of the Southern Wastes flew out with a laugh, clad in black dragon armor that glinted with metallic light, making him look majestic and inviolable. When he saw Xiao Chen, his expression froze—he had not expected the sealed youth to break free. Then his gaze deepened as he looked at the snow-white little beast.

“We have come to collect a little one,” Chiyou said succinctly.

“Who?”

“The Little Defiant Dragon,” Xiao Chen stated.

The Old Dragon frowned. “He is an outstanding member of our dragon race. Why do you seek him?”

Xiao Chen did not want to argue with him—he still held a grudge against this old dragon. He directly drew a crystal-clear dragon horn from his bosom. “A certain elder wishes to see the Little Defiant Dragon.”

“He… still lives?” The Old Dragon was visibly shaken and momentarily at a loss.

Xiao Chen said nothing more, simply watching the old dragon calmly.

“Very well.” Without further words, the Old Dragon slashed his right palm downward. A great mountain beside them rumbled and split apart, revealing a lush, green primeval forest beyond. The Old Dragon let out a long roar, and with flashes of light, five youths of eleven or twelve years old came flying swiftly toward them.

The one in the lead was the Little Defiant Dragon—unmistakably that stubborn, proud boy. Four years had passed, and he had grown significantly. His face was chiseled and resolute, his gaze even sharper than before.

“Xiao Chen…” The Little Defiant Dragon showed surprise. He had traveled the continent and heard many rumors, believing Xiao Chen had died. Meeting him now was both a shock and a joy.

“Ya ya…” Keke muttered discontentedly.

“Keke…” The rare smile appeared on the Little Defiant Dragon’s usually somber face. Then, like a conjurer, he produced a huge bundle filled with every kind of spiritual treasure from the Southern Wastes, all gleaming with brilliant light. The snow-white little beast’s discontent vanished instantly, replaced by cheers.

Among the five dragon youths, the one in green robes next to the Little Defiant Dragon looked at Xiao Chen with hopeful eyes—it was Liu Mu’s Azure Dragon King, who had been taken into the Southern Wastes earlier.

Xiao Chen recognized the young dragon king. “Senior, I ask your permission to take the Azure Dragon King as well.”

The Old Dragon nodded. “Agreed.” This time there was no hesitation; he consented readily.

The Little Defiant Dragon and the Azure Dragon King rushed over immediately. Old friends meeting again felt no strangeness, only warmth.

Chiyou looked at the Old Dragon. “Do you not plan to send some of the dragon clan into the Mortal World?”

“Some have already been sent,” the Old Dragon admitted.

“Then we take our leave.”

“Farewell.”

The exchange between half-ancestors was simple and direct, without pleasantries.

When it came to finding King Qin Guang, King Yan Luo, and King Reincarnation, it was like searching for a needle in the vast ocean. Xiao Chen had last seen them on the Devil’s Plain, when the three skeletons told him they were going to attend to a great matter. Then, during the chaos of the battle for the Twenty-Four War Swords and Paradise Lost, they never appeared—Xiao Chen had wondered about that for a long time, never knowing what they had been doing during that great upheaval.

Now, the underworld was empty, devoid of any life. All the bones had utterly crumbled and dissolved, leaving only desolate ruins.

They returned without success.

Once again at the edge of the Forbidden Sea, the crowd stretched beyond the horizon, cultivators everywhere.

Chiyou frowned. “There are more than nine half-ancestors entering the Mortal World. Like the first group, there are hidden half-ancestors mixed in.”

Chiyou’s cultivation was now far beyond what it had been. With the help of the Yellow Emperor, he had nearly regained his peak state and was even showing signs of breaking through further.

Now, summoning the King Ship was no longer as difficult as it had been on Dragon Island. He directly inscribed the Nine Abyss Heaven-Reaching Formation into the void, and in moments, a piercing ghostly wail sounded in the distance.

A mountain-sized black skull rapidly approached, exuding a murderous aura that soared to the heavens. Demonic clouds roiled, and black mist coiled over the golden sea, striking terror into every heart.

Many exchanged fearful glances, not daring to move.

The Buddha chanted a Buddha-name and once again opened his Pure Land, taking in a great number of cultivators. Otherwise, even the King Ship could not accommodate the far larger second wave of refugees. Laozi activated the Taiji Diagram, and the enormous diagram spun, sweeping away a vast multitude. Chiyou also acted, expanding a pocket dimension to draw in many cultivators.

The remaining group was not taken into the half-ancestors’ spaces, because Laozi, Chiyou, and the Buddha all sensed that half-ancestors were hidden among them, and they could not offend them so directly.

The sinister giant skull floated on the sea, and the crowd boarded the King Ship in succession.

Hai Yunxue came, her long dress fluttering, surrounded by a throng of young elites. When she saw Xiao Chen standing together with Chiyou, the Buddha, and Laozi, she was stunned. In her mind, Xiao Chen was dead. This meeting shocked her greatly, but she did not have time to dwell on it and hurriedly boarded the ship.

When almost everyone was aboard, an anxious shout came from the distant sky: “Wait!”

A unicorn, white as snow, came galloping across the waves. On its back sat a girl in pure white garments, ethereal and breathtakingly beautiful. She seemed very excited, waving her jade arms constantly.

Xiao Chen recognized her at once—it was the Royal Celestial Maiden, Zhao Lin’er. Having heard news of the return to the Mortal World, how could she not be excited?

“Wait! There are more behind!”

As she drew close, Zhao Lin’er was startled to see Xiao Chen, but she urged her mount onward and leaped onto the King Ship, afraid there might be no space left.

Behind her, the vast sea roiled with fury. The first to appear were five hundred Sun Knights, each riding a savage beast that could walk on waves—some were giant lions with bared fangs, some were winged heavenly leopards, and some were scale-covered dragons. The knights were solemn, like resurrected war gods. They wore iron and bronze armor that gleamed coldly, each suit bearing the marks of sword and spear—the scars of time, recording their former glory.

This was nothing like the envoy Xiao Chen had seen in Yin Capital. This was the true Sun Knight Order, which in ancient times had slain gods and demons, causing the entire continent to tremble. In that age, the words “Sun Knight” represented a supreme honor.

Even the Buddha was moved. “These are the most powerful battle force of the Sun Church. In the old days, when five hundred knights united, they could stand against a half-ancestor. Among these five hundred, at least a hundred are knights from that ancient era.”

The Sun Church was practically moving half its foundation into the Mortal World.

After they arrived, several aged knights opened a pocket dimension, and the five hundred vanished. The old men boarded the King Ship.

The sea continued to surge. The schools of the three holy spirits, Allah, Satan, and other Western half-ancestors arrived one after another. The King Ship held far more people than the Ancestral Dragon Ship had.

“Wooo…” A piercing ghostly wail tore across the sky, and the King Ship set sail.

Xiao Chen stood on the deck, frowning. This time it had really gone too far. He had come seeking aid and instead had drawn such an army. The Mortal World would never be peaceful again.

Through clouds and mist, the King Ship raised great waves on the Forbidden Sea, slowly heading toward Dragon Island.

“The body is the Bodhi tree, the mind like a bright mirror stand. Often wipe it diligently, let no dust alight.”

Buddhist verses suddenly echoed across the Forbidden Sea, filled with an ominous magic, repeating again and again like a great bell or drum that shook the soul. A bizarre sight: black mist seethed, and a headless monk in snow-white robes stepped across golden waves. Though headless, the corpse was graceful and otherworldly, like a banished immortal, untainted by any mundane dust. A headless body wreathed in black mist—where elegance and horror coexisted, a contradiction that made the spirit uneasy.

Many looked toward the Buddha, guessing the identity of the headless corpse. It must be a great Buddhist sage of legend. In Buddhism, only the Buddha’s words are recorded as sutras, but there had been a single exception throughout the ages: the Sixth Patriarch Huineng, whose words were also honored as a sutra. His divine power and virtue nearly equaled the Buddha’s.

And when speaking of Huineng, one could not help but recall another genius—Shenxiu. It was because of the brilliant Shenxiu that the Sixth Patriarch’s light shone even brighter. Their rivalry made the Sixth Patriarch glorious, while Shenxiu’s edge was hidden, becoming the green leaf beside the red flower.

“The body is the Bodhi tree, the mind like a bright mirror stand…” This verse was uttered by the Sixth Patriarch Huineng, but it originated from Shenxiu’s genius.

Huineng was the Second Buddha, and Shenxiu was his equal. The headless monk before them was certainly a great power of Buddhism, capable of surpassing many bodhisattvas. Otherwise, how could his corpse roam the outer reaches of the Forbidden Sea?

The Buddha frowned. “So he is here.” He pointed a finger, and a beam of Buddha light shot out, intending to fix Shenxiu in place.

The Forbidden Sea erupted. The headless monk suddenly waved his hand, and the golden sea seemed about to overturn. All were terrified—Shenxiu, worthy of contending with the Second Buddha, had actually blocked the Buddha’s light.

The Buddha frowned, then spoke like thunder, shouting three times: “Shenxiu! Shenxiu! Shenxiu!”

The headless monk stopped his restless movements and slowly calmed. The Buddha touched one point, and the Twelve-Grade Lotus Platform emerged, floating into the Forbidden Sea. Shenxiu hesitated briefly, then stepped onto it, and the lotus platform brought him back.

With a flash, all cultivators except the half-ancestors stepped back, making way for the headless monk. Shenxiu made no unnecessary movement, standing quietly beside the Buddha.

“Wooo…” With a ghostly wail, the King Ship rode the wind and waves, driven by the half-ancestors’ heaven-reaching powers, speeding forward like a flying arrow.

Demonic mist blackened the sea. A day later, they finally arrived at Dragon Island. Xiao Chen’s heart surged. He was about to return to the Mortal World, and he longed to see what expression the Blue Lotus Celestial Maiden would wear when nine half-ancestors appeared before her.

“Boom!” As they neared Dragon Island, everyone was greatly alarmed. A sound like heaven and earth splitting came, and the entire island seemed to shake.

“They are attacking the divine stele!” Chiyou exclaimed.

Even the usually calm Laozi showed surprise. “It’s Primordial and Tongtian… How could they be so reckless?”

At that moment, above Dragon Island, a vast expanse of white bone sea appeared, and a huge, sinister ancient castle loomed within it.

The Buddha looked up. “I fear we too may have to intervene,” he said softly.