The Return to the Nine Provinces

Time passed swiftly, the years flowing like a stream. In the desolate plains of the Death World, where no life stirred, Xiao Chen sat alone in meditation. Seventeen years had come and gone, and he remained as motionless as a fossilized statue.

Occasionally, a chill wind swept across the earth, producing a mournful, piercing howl. The barren land was a reddish-brown, cold and hard. Here, there was nothing but wind-weathered bones. Nothing else.

As the years accumulated, Xiao Chen became buried under layers of dust and sand. He merged completely with this solitary world, as if he had lost all vitality forever.

Since retreating from the Nine Provinces to the Death World, he had sat like withered wood for seventeen years. His jet-black hair had long turned a lifeless grayish-white. When the cold wind blew, strands of gray hair would fall and turn to dust.

Thus, day after day, year after year, when the thirty-first year arrived, Xiao Chen still sat like a fossil, making one wonder if he had simply passed away right there.

Then, the leaden clouds churned, seeming to press down upon this barren plain. On that deathly silent ground, the fossil that had not moved for over thirty years finally made a strange sound.

"Bam."

With a slight tremor, Xiao Chen's form seemed to crack like dried clay as dust fell away. His disordered gray hair drifted down. The withered, wood-like figure slowly rose, and a layer of dry, cracked old skin peeled from his body.

After thirty-two years of motionless meditation, Xiao Chen had finally regained his vitality. Black hair grew anew, and his flesh radiated blood and vigor. He began to walk toward the direction of the God Village.

He seemed to be the same as before, with no powerful energy fluctuations detectable. It was as if he had truly just sat in meditation for thirty-two years.

The God Village felt lifeless and dead. Many cultivators from the Nine Provinces had been brought here, far from their homeland, and their spirits had been low for so many years. Only eternal optimists like Fatty Zhuge and Jin Sanyi could still be as joyful as ever.

Old Ancestor Dragon, the Flame Emperor, and several other Ancestral Gods had vanished into the depths of the Death World many years ago. They had been missing for thirty-two years with no sign of their return.

Over thirty years had passed—it was hard to imagine what the Nine Provinces and the Four Worlds had become. People dared not think too deeply about it.

Thirty-two years later, Xiao Chen's return to the God Village immediately drew attention. With a whoosh, he was surrounded. At the forefront were Jin Sanyi, Sha Polang, and Fatty Zhuge, leading a group of children. Others were not in such good spirits; most were like Xiao Chen, spending the difficult years in seclusion.

"Brother, I thought you had become a relic," Fatty Zhuge said. "Sitting there for so many years, from a distance you looked just like a fossil."

Hearing this, Xiao Chen delivered a slap directly to Fatty Zhuge's head, making his plump flesh tremble. The man's face was glowing, clearly overnourished, and his white hair was even more lustrous.

"Fatty, I really don't know what to say about you. In the Death World, not only do you not waste away, but you can still eat until you're this oily and bright. That's a realm of its own."

"What can I do? I was born a foodie," Jin Sanyi concluded.

As a result, Fatty Zhuge knocked him flying with a bump from his rear. "The cultivation method handed down to me by the Martial Ancestor is truly a peerless divine art! I shall eat my way across the world!" the white fatty boasted.

Beside them, Sha Polang muttered, "Damn, this dead fatty eats everything. He even sneaked off and ate most of the fire seeds I painstakingly collected. Soon, I reckon he'll even start eating bones."

"Where are Liu Mu and Chen Fang?" Xiao Chen asked.

"They've all gone into seclusion. Everyone is desperately trying to increase their strength. Everyone feels the pressure. They think the Death World won't be peaceful for long, and it will likely become a battlefield before long."

"And Keke?"

"Naturally, sleeping."

In the God Village, Xiao Chen saw the little beast sleeping soundly. The little creature was sleeping unusually deeply; it had slept for thirty years without waking. It seemed that if no one disturbed it, it would continue to sleep forever.

Xiao Chen did not wake the little one. He knew that for this little fellow, sleeping was a form of cultivation. Rather than waking it, it was better to let it slumber peacefully, as it might well become the main force in the coming great war.

"Sigh, although it's quite leisurely sitting here in the God Village watching beauties all day, staying in one place is starting to get boring," Jin Sanyi complained. "I really want to go back to that lively, colorful world. I wonder what the Nine Provinces and the Four Worlds are like now. I really miss them."

"That's true," Sha Polang, though a fire-seed creature reborn in the Death World, had visited the Nine Provinces several times and was now deeply regretful. "I miss it. I wonder what's become of the young ladies I came to know in the Nine Provinces."

"You romantic old bone, you don't even have flesh. Are you lamenting about young ladies? What, girl skeletons?" Fatty Zhuge mocked him.

"Get lost, you dead fatty," Sha Polang retorted.

Jin Sanyi then urged Xiao Chen, "How about we go take a look at the Nine Provinces? I wonder what things are like."

Beside them, a group of children, their eyes bright and shining—some were original children of the God Village, while others were descendants of cultivators brought from the Nine Provinces—also yearned greatly for the Nine Provinces and the Four Worlds.

"Better to just focus on your training. You never know when the Otherworld Ancestral Gods might come charging over."

"No way. Can they even enter the Death World?"

"Of course," Xiao Chen warned. "In the past, didn't Keke's father kill an upper Ancestral God in the Death World? That proves that in the distant past, Otherworld Ancestral Gods already knew the method to enter the Death World."

Afterward, Xiao Chen met with the elders Li Mu and Zhao Ying in the God Village, wanting to ask about the current situation in the Nine Provinces. However, it was unfortunate that these two elders had not entered the Nine Provinces at all in the past thirty-plus years and had no idea what was happening there. In the end, Xiao Chen decided to make a trip himself. If he didn't, he felt he would never be at ease.

Time flowed on. Thirty-two years had passed. With a heavy heart, Xiao Chen set foot on the Nine Provinces once more.

Above Ancestral Dragon Village, the black divine gate had grown even larger, becoming an indestructible passageway. The majestic Dead City on the ground had not changed much, still standing mightily where it was. However, the surrounding land had become quite desolate, overgrown with weeds and tangled forests. Clearly, the lack of human habitation was the reason for this.

Xiao Chen pushed through the tangled trees, wanting to find the old Ancestral Dragon Village, but it was nowhere to be seen. The broken Magic Diagram had pressed down there, completely sealing that area. He clenched his fists, wanting to activate the broken diagram and sweep it away, but he knew he could change nothing. In the end, he could only turn and leave.

Had all life in the Nine Provinces ceased to exist? Xiao Chen's heart was filled with unease. If that were the case, it would be too cruel.

After walking for over ten li, he reached the Yellow River. The mighty river still surged. The Little Defiant Dragon had leaped into the Yellow River long ago—where was he now? Xiao Chen stood there for a long while before heading toward what had once been the prosperous heart of the Nine Provinces.

Now, reducing the earth to an inch was a mere parlor trick for him. After traveling another hundred li or so, Xiao Chen's heart immediately sank. Along the way, he had seen thirteen villages and two small towns in succession, but there was no trace of human activity. They were all desolate, completely reduced to ruins and overgrown with weeds. Clearly, they had been abandoned for many years.

Soon, he arrived at a large city. It, too, was as silent as death—broken walls and ruined buildings, with dense weeds growing amidst the rubble. When he swept it with his powerful divine sense, he found countless bleached bones hidden in the ruins.

Even though he had been mentally prepared, Xiao Chen still felt a tightness in his chest. This all indicated that the Otherworld had indeed carried out a cruel, inhuman massacre!

He traveled through most of Yongzhou, finding not a single living person. The once prosperous cities had become cities of the dead. All buildings had collapsed, and nearly all life had been wiped out. He didn't even see a single rat. The extermination was complete!

This filled Xiao Chen with a raging fury. He gazed at the pitch-black divine gate above Ancestral Dragon Village, feeling a powerful urge. If his strength had reached the Ancestral God Ninth Heaven, he would have charged without hesitation straight into the Otherworld, killing in all directions.

The mountains and rivers remained, but their homes were all destroyed. The people of the past had all turned to bones. One could not help but feel sorrow and shed tears.

Xiao Chen, like a ghost, wandered alone over the ruins, walking from one place to another. What he saw everywhere were bones, ruins, and overgrown weeds. He said nothing, as if silently mourning all that had been lost.

After traveling through all of Yongzhou, he confirmed that no one had survived. They had all been wiped out.

Xiao Chen stood in silence for a long time. The broken diagram flickered faintly beside him, as if it might shake apart at any moment. "I hope there are survivors," he said after a long while, finally calming down. The diagram flickered and vanished.

He left Yongzhou and headed east, believing that some people must have survived.

Just as he stepped out of Yongzhou's borders, the sound of crows cawing suddenly reached him. Though crows were birds of ill omen, Xiao Chen felt a glimmer of familiarity. At least this was a living creature that had not been wiped out.

Soon, his expression became increasingly excited, for after traveling another hundred li, he saw curling wisps of smoke from cooking fires. The fields ahead were not barren; there was a small village there.

"There are still people…"

The village was small, but it was full of life—cocks crowing and dogs barking. It had several dozen households.

"They're not cultivators, just ordinary folk. Could it be that the Otherworld Ancestral Gods did not carry out a complete policy of massacre?"

Xiao Chen was very excited. Using his earth-shrinking technique, he covered several hundred li and saw many towns and villages along the way, as well as a few cities. The further east he went, and the further away from Yongzhou, the more people he saw, and the more prosperous the cities became.

When he reached the Central Plains region, what he saw was not too different from years past. The mundane world was as bustling as it had ever been, as if he had never left.

"What is this about?" Xiao Chen was filled with confusion. Had they only slaughtered all the life in Yongzhou but spared the people of other regions? Could the Otherworld Ancestral Gods have softened at the last moment? Impossible.

Soon, Xiao Chen noticed one fact. Although the Central Plains had not suffered annihilation, he did not see a single cultivator. They were all ordinary people.

"Where have they gone?" Xiao Chen flew up into the clouds and looked down upon the Nine Provinces, muttering to himself. "Were they all killed?"

Soon, he turned his gaze toward the sea. There seemed to be energy fluctuations coming from that direction. At his level of cultivation, his divine sense was powerful enough to sweep across tens of thousands of li with a little effort.

"A barrier…"

Xiao Chen's gaze turned cold. There were quite a few barriers erected on the sea, sealing entire islands.

Whoosh.

He vanished from his spot, reappearing nearly ten thousand li away in an instant.

The islands looked like prisons, holding vast numbers of cultivators captive.

Xiao Chen flew over one island and, after some effort, broke through the barrier around it. It was clear just how powerful the cultivator who had set up these barriers was.

The island was very large, and there were many cultivators on it. Although they were confined to this place, their powers had not been sealed.

"Hmm, these are people from the Undying Sect." Xiao Chen quickly swept his gaze across the island and saw some familiar faces from the Undying Sect. He even saw the old patriarch of the Undying Sect himself. The entire sect had been imprisoned here.

The Undying Sect had deep ties with him. Back in the day, his first stop after entering Eternal Continent from Dragon Island had been the Undying Sect. Moreover, during the bloody battle at Heavenly Emperor City, it was that old patriarch who had sent a beam of sword-light to help him break through the encirclement.

At the time, Xiao Chen had not known it was the Undying Sect's old patriarch who had aided him. But as he grew stronger, he naturally came to know of all those past events.

Xiao Chen cautiously swept the island with his powerful divine sense, discovering a great architectural complex in the center of the island.

Clearly, that was the dwelling place of the Otherworld cultivators. The Undying Sect members were excluded and forbidden from approaching that area. There was actually a Seventh Heaven Half-Ancestor sitting in command there. Even if there were no other Otherworld cultivators on the island, that one person alone was enough to intimidate the entire Undying Sect.

"I finally understand why the Ancestral God did not completely exterminate these ants. I must admit, some of these ants truly possess remarkable creative ability," the Seventh Heaven Otherworld Half-Ancestor said, sounding somewhat impressed. He said to the others in the great hall, "Take the Undying Sect, which we are suppressing here, for example. The 'Shatter the Demon, Plant the God' technique is truly extraordinary. Not only have we benefited greatly, but one of our Ancestral Gods has also taken a great interest in it. He seems to have received tremendous inspiration from it and is preparing to create a world-shaking divine art to complete a new metamorphosis."

"The 'Shatter the Demon, Plant the God' is indeed extraordinary. However, the Undying Sect is about to lose its value. I'm afraid it won't be long before they become a whetstone for our younger generation," the Seventh Heaven Half-Ancestor nodded. "We do not raise wastrels." Having said this, he seemed to think of something. "One of our Ancestral God's direct descendants will be arriving here today to select some ants of decent talent. This absolutely must not go wrong."

"Rest assured, my lord. Nothing unexpected will happen."

"Report! The envoy dispatched by the Ancestral God has arrived."

"Oh? Go and welcome him quickly," the Seventh Heaven Half-Ancestor said. Upon hearing this, he actually led the crowd to bow to a young man.

"There is no need for such ceremony." The young man waved his hand, his voice very cold.

From a distance, Xiao Chen observed clearly. This young 'Divine Envoy' should be over a thousand years old. His strength was at the Half-Ancestor level, which could be considered an uncommon talent.

"What is the quality of the ants here like?" the young Divine Envoy asked.

"Passable, I suppose," the Seventh Heaven Half-Ancestor replied. "May I ask if you need ants selected for the gladiatorial combat, or do you need beautiful ones?"

"Both."

"Very well. I will have them selected immediately."

"There's no need. Summon the high-quality ants. I will select them myself."

"That's fine, then. I shall trouble the Divine Envoy." The Seventh Heaven Half-Ancestor ordered the Otherworld cultivators to go and summon the Undying Sect's elite.

"There are many talented individuals in the Undying Sect at present. Their cultivation is extraordinary, but most are too old and not really suitable for the arena. However, their current patriarch is a suitable candidate. His cultivation in the 'Shatter the Demon, Plant the God' has achieved significant success, and he is using his own body as a crucible. Given time, his potential will be limitless. Furthermore, there are many beautiful women on this island, including some peerless beauties, who can be selected as serving maids."

The Divine Envoy nodded after hearing this. In the shadows, Xiao Chen's gaze was icy cold as he watched all of this calmly. If he was not mistaken, the Undying Sect's elites were truly being treated as slaves. Their situation was truly pathetic.

Before long, a group of the Undying Sect's elite was brought to this place. The Divine Envoy's powerful divine sense swept over them, and his first glance fell upon the Undying Sect's patriarch. He nodded and said, "Not bad. He's a man of some caliber. Train him well and let him go to the arena. I imagine he'll achieve a good ranking. The tribe of ants owned by our Ancestral God is, on the whole, not inferior to those of the other Ancestral Gods."

Upon hearing these words, the gathered Undying Sect elites were all filled with rage, but they could only swallow their anger. Over the past thirty-plus years, they had come to understand their current situation. To the Ancestral Gods of the Nine Provinces and the Four Worlds, they really were no different from ants. It was truly a tragedy.

The few remaining Half-Ancestors had long since departed on the Ancestral Dragon Ship. Those who remained had no power to resist before the armies of the Otherworld.

"You, come out." The Divine Envoy pointed at the Undying Sect's patriarch.

The Undying Sect's patriarch clenched his fists, but in the end, he helplessly released his grip. If he resisted, his disciples would likely all be implicated.

A dignified patriarch of the Undying Sect, being selected to compete in a gladiatorial arena—it was truly hard to believe. Xiao Chen, watching all of this from a distance, felt a killing intent surge within him.

Just then, a group of beautiful women was brought forth. Among them was one radiant beauty who stood out like a crane among chickens. The Divine Envoy's eyes brightened immediately. "This woman is excellent!"

The Seventh Heaven Half-Ancestor said with a flattering smile, "May the Divine Envoy be satisfied. This woman's name is Yan Qingcheng, one of the most renowned peerless beauties of the Nine Provinces and Eternal Continent in days gone by."

The Divine Envoy nodded repeatedly. "Excellent. With a beauty capable of toppling cities and captivating nations like her in the beauty contest, she is sure to achieve a good ranking. If she is chosen by an Ancestral God and gifted to his direct descendants…"

One could only imagine what that would truly entail. It was a humiliation beyond words. The jewel of the Undying Sect was about to be reduced to such a state.

"Yan Qingcheng…" From a distance, Xiao Chen gazed at the familiar beautiful woman and recalled many memories of the past.