Shrouding the Heavens

Chapter 424: Chapter 429: The Peerless Finale

The Saintly Divine Armor descended from the heavens, radiating with boundless light, like a Phoenix of eternal life amidst the resplendent divine flame. Its powerful aura made people tremble, causing everyone to retreat.

It took a human form, as if it were a living being, wielding a Golden Holy Sword with unparalleled sharpness. The murderous intent was so overwhelming that leaves scattered chaotically in the forest.

Everyone was terrified, as if facing an ancient deity. A reverence stemming from the depths of their hearts made them unable to resist kneeling, their bodies quivering.

The Golden Divine Armor was as brilliant as the sun. With a CLANG, it landed on the ground, golden divine radiance shooting out and flickering like flames. The Golden Divine Bow on its back quivered gently, tightening everyone’s heartstrings and making many feel as if they were suffocating.

CLANG!

A metallic reverberation echoed, like the Dragon Cry of the Nine Heavens, or a Phoenix Cry shaking the firmament, resounding throughout Heaven and Earth. Its sound was clear and cold, reaching directly into the soul.

THUD.

Many cultivators could no longer endure it and involuntarily knelt, kowtowing towards the peerless divine armor before them. This was an unparalleled spiritual pressure that inspired awe and worship.

“It truly possesses life!” Even Ye Fan was astonished; despite standing far away, he felt a terrifying majesty.

CLANG!

Another soft tremor sounded. The divine armor’s brilliance retracted, and calm returned to the mountains, allowing the kneeling people to stand. Each of them had a face as pale as paper, their hearts filled with shock.

“All are dead!”

On another peak, the supreme figure of the Yin Yang Sect stood on a majestically constructed high platform, gazing at the scene within the Ancient Desolation Forbidden Land and uttering this sigh.

Total annihilation!

The Yin Yang Sect had obtained mysterious stone clothes in the northern region, capable of isolating all Qi Mechanisms, yet they were ultimately useless. Those who entered swiftly aged and then turned to ash.

The mountain range was filled with murmurs as everyone whispered. The divine armor of the Ancient Saint had returned, and the stone clothes of the Yin Yang Sect had all shattered, signifying complete failure.

“The Ancient Desolation Forbidden Land cannot be entered!”

“Three years ago, a mysterious ancient coffin appeared, and the curse of the Sacred Land was at its weakest. Alas, that sole opportunity was missed.”

The people of the Central States sighed, their hearts filled with reluctance.

Many felt a sense of unrest. Even the Divine Dynasties and eternal Great Sects of the Central States had no solution; who else in this world could enter to pluck the Undying Divine Medicine?

“I am unwilling! I wish to defy the heavens!”

An overwhelmingly domineering voice shouted out. Boundless leaves fell like rain, and the Primitive Ancient Forest stirred as if a True Dragon had been born, transformed into a human, and emerged from the Great Wilderness.

An immensely dignified figure emerged from the mountains. His overwhelming power suppressed the sun and moon; he was like a Heavenly Emperor descending, with Dragon Qi spiraling around him. He looked down upon the world with an aura of supremacy over the Eight Desolates and the Six Directions.

“The Old Emperor of Ancient Hua has arrived!”

“The peerless Emperor descends, coming to the Life Forbidden Land! This is truly astonishing.”

The native cultivators of the Eastern Wastelands were all shocked.

The Ancient Hua Emperor wore a Nine Dragon Crown and a Nine Dragon Robe. He walked step by step as if from ancient times, blending seamlessly with this world and making the sun and moon lose their color.

His hair was as white as snow and his body emaciated; he was nearing his end. Yet, his aura remained unyielding, as boundless as the ocean, evoking awe. An Ancestor Dragon, seemingly of flesh and blood, was coiled atop his head.

“Emperor!”

Many stepped forward, offering grand salutations and urging him not to enter the Ancient Desolation Forbidden Land.

Some even knelt, willing to go in his place to pluck the Undying Divine Medicine and offer it to him.

“I am already a dying man. All my affairs have been arranged; there’s no need for you to die for me,” the old Emperor of Ancient Hua declined.

“Your Majesty, please reconsider! The Ancient Desolation Forbidden Land differs from other Life Forbidden Zones. No matter how high one’s cultivation base, once inside, they will be reduced to mortals.”

“Indeed! If that is the case, let us go in Your Majesty’s stead. We will do everything in our power to pluck the Undying Divine Medicine.”

The people of the Ancient Hua Dynasty all implored him, including four Great Power Level royal uncles who stepped forward, performing grand salutations to block his path.

Many scattered cultivators couldn’t help but be amazed. A peerless Emperor was about to enter the Ancient Desolation Forbidden Land! The legends were indeed true; most old Emperors and Peacock Kings chose this path in their twilight years, and now people were witnessing it firsthand!

Since ancient times, old Peacock Kings and Emperors seldom left behind graves; the Great Wilderness and the Life Forbidden Zones were their burial grounds. This had become a consensus.

Perhaps, one day, upon entering an ancient forest, one might encounter a set of white skeletal remains that once belonged to a peerless Heroic Lord who commanded the winds and clouds. This was their sorrow.

Eventually, no one escapes death. No matter how great a hero, there is a time for their curtain to fall. Their twilight years are equally desolate; a peerless overlord is ultimately reduced to a handful of yellow earth.

It is said the immortal path has no end, yet since ancient times, who has truly achieved eternal life? Not a single person succeeded; all were like the sunset, vibrant red at first, yet ultimately dimming.

The old Emperor of Ancient Hua, extraordinary in stature and dignified as the heavens, glanced at everyone and said, “All of you, step back. This is my choice!”

“Your Majesty!”

“The Ancient Desolation Forbidden Land strips away the cultivation of all peerless masters!”

The people of the Central State Immortal Dynasty all voiced their objections.

“Even if I am reduced to a mortal, I am still the Human Emperor, stronger than others. There’s no need for further words. I do not wish for anyone to die in my stead.”

This old Emperor possessed grand courage. He had guessed the outcome yet still chose this path. All his affairs were arranged; he was making his final struggle.

No one dared to stop him. Wherever his gaze passed, even the four royal uncles had to fall silent and retreat to the side.

The people of the Yin Yang Sect remained silent, observing from the sidelines. They were competitors, yet they shared the same plight.

The cultivators of the Eastern Wastelands were shocked. They were finally witnessing firsthand what the twilight of an old Emperor looked like and what choices he would make.

Everything was as the legends foretold: a glorious life, stunning an era, yet in the end, walking alone on a path without hope.

A royal uncle of the Ancient Hua Dynasty stepped forward with a sigh. He approached the Saintly Divine Armor of the ancient Sages. Though he was comparable to a sovereign and possessed boundless magical power, he was respectful, offering a salute to the Golden Divine Armor. “Please, Divine Armor, protect my lord,” he said.

CLANG!

A soft sound pierced the Heavenly Universe. Divine Light surged, soaring into the sky. Its unrivaled majesty swept across the entire mountain range, like a vast ocean submerging this mountainous land.

Afterwards, the world fell silent. The mountain winds ceased, the vegetation stilled, and all sounds vanished. Time seemed to come to a standstill; a deathly peace descended!

Ninety percent of those present knelt, their bodies and minds trembling, unable to resist bowing their heads. Within the Endless Mountain Range, countless birds and beasts cowered, trembling as they wailed towards this direction.

This was the power of the Ancient Saint’s Divine Armor!

Even though Ye Fan was far away, he was deeply shocked. This wasn’t the first time he had seen it; in the northern region, he had once witnessed a Saintly Divine Armor cleave open the Divine King Pure Land.

It was known that the Divine King Pure Land boasted unparalleled defense, eternally unbreakable, yet it had still been cleaved open. The Saintly Divine Armor wielded the power to reshape Heaven and Earth!

SWISH!

A flash of light, and the unparalleled Divine Armor covered the old Emperor’s body. His entire being turned golden, and divine flames burned fiercely around him, commanding reverence.

He wielded the Golden Holy Sword and carried the Golden Divine Bow on his back, like a deity walking from ancient times, awe-inspiring and exuding a mighty power!

The old Emperor of Ancient Hua seemed rejuvenated. His body had reached its peak state as he walked forward resolutely, never looking back.

This might be the last time people would see him in this world…

Time seemed to halt. No one spoke; all waited in silence, though many had already guessed the outcome.

An unknown amount of time passed before a royal uncle of Ancient Hua, standing on the high mountain peak, cried out in grief. His voice was mournful, and countless falling leaves swirled around, filling the air with desolation.

His Divine Eye opened wide. He saw everything within the Forbidden Land: the unparalleled Emperor had fallen. He had ultimately failed to defy Heaven, ending his final years in sorrow, buried in a foreign land!

“Your Majesty!”

The people of the Ancient Hua Dynasty cried out in grief, all weeping bitterly. Their voices shook Heaven and Earth, yet they couldn’t change anything.

“I refuse to yield! I wish to defy Heaven!” These words seemed to still echo, but unfortunately, it was ultimately a tragic end.

SWISH!

A flash of radiance, and the Ancient Saint’s Divine Armor descended from the sky. It had dimmed considerably and was gently trembling, stained with some blood and a considerable amount of ash.

The Golden Divine Armor was damaged; who knew how many years it would take to recover.

Looking through eternity, who in the world could remain immortal? A sense of despair arose in everyone. Though legends of immortality were unending, what people witnessed were scenes of “emptiness” and “extinction,” one after another.

Even Ancient Great Emperors had vanished into the river of history; how could one not despair?

This was an endless, unachievable path!

The people of the Ancient Hua Dynasty retreated to Yan’s capital in gloom, their endeavor undoubtedly ending in-failure. News of this shook the entire southern region, and all the Sacred Lands came to investigate.

The unparalleled Emperor had fallen. The people of the Yin Yang Sect also withdrew from the Ancient Desolation Forbidden Land and returned to Yan’s capital. Their supreme Sect Hierarch did not make a final, desperate attempt, for the outcome was already written.

The news quickly spread throughout the Eastern Wastelands, and all the major forces were shaken. It was indeed true that the Seven Great Life Forbidden Areas were not to be entered; they were the burial grounds for grand masters.

However, in the future, some old Peacock Kings would inevitably choose such a path. That was the sorrow of their late years; to attain rebirth, they had no other choice.

The Undying Divine Medicine could choose its own dwelling place; it was rumored that they had all flown into the Seven Great Life Forbidden Areas.

Ye Fan felt a chill in his heart; the curse in the Ancient Desolation Forbidden Land had become much stronger. He fell into silence!

Can I succeed? he wondered. Even if he could refine unparalleled stone clothes with the Forbidden Immortal Six Seals, capable of isolating all Qi Mechanisms of the world, he still saw it as a road of no return.

This turmoil shook the Eastern Wastelands, and it was a long time before things calmed down. During this time, Ye Fan pondered deeply and ultimately entered seclusion once more.

For two full weeks, he exhausted his mind and energy, integrating nine ancient characters from the *Dao Scripture* into the stone clothes, forming Innate Emperor Patterns with extraordinary effects.

These patterns could be used to suppress oneself, achieve Eternity, fix time, and explore the profound mysteries of Heaven and Earth; their power was unfathomable and limitless.

Ye Fan spent over ten days, barely holding on physically and mentally, before finally merging the nine ancient characters with the countless Resentful Heaven Patterns in the stone clothes.

“Big Brother, you finally woke up.” The little girl, Nan Nan, blinked her long lashes, looking at him with her big eyes, her demeanor innocent and adorable.

Ye Fan felt guilty. He had been too busy to care for this little girl. She was still wearing tattered clothes, and the holes in her small shoes visibly exposed her toes.

However, thankfully, the inn staff had followed his instructions, sending her tasty food daily so she didn’t go hungry.

“Big Brother, the old man across the street looks so pitiful,” the little girl said with compassion, naturally referring to Zhang Wenchang.

Ye Fan patted her head. This little girl is just as pitiful, he thought, a pang of sympathy stirring in his heart.

“Nan Nan, you have to behave. I might have to leave for a few months. Patiently wait for me to come back.”

“Big Brother…” The little girl’s head immediately dropped, her mood sinking, thinking Ye Fan was abandoning her.

“I will return. Don’t worry, little Nan Nan,” Ye Fan gently comforted.

“Really?” The little girl still felt uneasy. Her eyes shimmered with tears, her lips pouted, and her head was lowered. Looking at her worn shoes, she said, “I tend to forget the past. I’m afraid that after some time, I’ll forget about you, Big Brother.”

“You won’t forget,” Ye Fan reassured her. “I’ll leave you a piece of Jade that I’ve refined. It can record your daily experiences, so when you wake up each day, you can see what happened the previous day.”

Ye Fan decided to enter the Ancient Desolation Forbidden Land; he couldn’t delay any longer. He wasn’t going to meet his end. Apart from the unparalleled stone clothes, he had another ultimate trump card, one that could perhaps withstand the ravages of time. That was the key to his success!

He looked towards the heavens. Perhaps I could also borrow Ye Huiling’s Heaven Covering Treasure Clothes, he mused. Having extra protection is better than none.

“Little Nan Nan, be good and wait for me!”

Ye Fan stood up and strode out of the inn. Behind him, a small figure waved its little hand, big eyes glistening with tears as she watched him leave.

Time flies; less than four days remain this month. Brothers and sisters, please cast your final monthly tickets! Thank you.

To be continued. If you wish to know what happens next, please log in to www. for more chapters, and support the author by supporting legitimate reading!