Chapter 3071 - A Coffin for the Living

You couldn’t reverse time. Everything vanished into the past.

Yet Xiao Jian had reversed time and returned to the distant past, and he’d hidden himself at the far end of the Path of the Ancient Gods!

Perhaps that was what had given him the opportunity to travel between the past and present and explore the Primordial Era!

Su Yi had seen experts of the long-lost past in the River of Epochs, people who’d seized opportunities to live on amidst turbulent space-time and claim their place in the present day!

If people from the past could live in the present day, it seemed only natural that people from the present could return to the past.

Su Yi controlled the Epoch Spark and had the foundations to become the Master of the Epochs. He couldn’t have been any more familiar with all this.

Had I ‘Brought Order’ to the River of Epochs, I could surely control its past, present, and future. In doing so, I could fully grasp the secrets of how Xiao Jian returned to the past. Su Yi sighed.

Back then, he’d striven for perfection, so he decided against using the Epoch Spark to Bring Order.

It was for this reason that he merely had the potential to become the Master of the Epochs, but he wasn’t yet truly the Master of the Epochs.

Moreover, as time passed and his cultivation grew, Su Yi grew increasingly aware that no Grand Dao or system of cultivation was perfect.

This was, perhaps, proof of the idea that “even the Dao of Heaven is flawed.”

But Su Yi didn’t give up, because he was striving for a unique, unprecedented path of cultivation!

He was convinced that when the day came that he brought order to the world, it would be truly perfect and complete.

True Progenitor Shi Yin had no idea what kind of ripples the mention of Destiny’s Chosen had created in Su Yi’s heart.

He just continued, “It’s just as you said, Senior. The power of Past Karma is indeed in the hands of the Destiny Demons. As denizens of the River of Destiny, they once appeared in the Four Seas, and they visited the Sea of Fate.

“There’s a deep connection between them and the Sea of Fate. They say that before Destiny’s Chosen suppressed them, they planned to create a habitat for themselves in the Sea of Fate as a base outside of the River of Destiny.

“They’d already begun the process, too. The Crimson Fate Lotus Pond was the first hidden realm the Destiny Demons built in the Sea of Fate.

“But before they could occupy the Sea of Fate, they lost the Battle of Silent Annihilation and were confined to the depths of the Silent Annihilation Forbidden Domain, vanishing from this world forevermore.”

This was Su Yi’s first time hearing of such a connection between the Negative Karma Destiny Demons and the Sea of Fate.

“Had the Destiny Demons successfully claimed the Sea of Fate... the consequences would have been unimaginably dire,” said True Progenitor Shi Yin. “Their murderous intent is so enormous, and they prove their Daos through destruction. With their power over Past Karma, they’d have swept across the Four Seas upon establishing themselves in the Sea of Fate, then fought their way into the Eternal Heavens Domain to bring ruin to the masses.

“More importantly, their power of Past Karma can ignite cultivators’ past karma. That makes them all but invincible here in the Sea of Fate.”

Su Yi’s heart shook. He now carried the Medallion of Past Karma, one of the Destiny Demons’ supreme Ancestral Destiny Artifacts.

If what True Progenitor Shi Yin said was true, the medallion would prove extraordinarily useful in the Sea of Fate!

“Is there anything else you’d like to know, Senior?” said True Progenitor Shi Yin. He hadn’t lost interest at all. On the contrary, he hoped to win this supreme being’s favor, so he’d been extremely proactive and cooperative this entire time.

Su Yi sank into uncharacteristic silence. He found himself struggling with a guilty conscience. Is it... really okay for me to deceive this once-terrifying existence, the leader of the Chaos Fiends of the early days of the Primordial Era? What will happen if he sees through me? Will he lose his temper and fly into a rage?

Su Yi couldn’t deny that he’d benefited enormously from his conversation with True Progenitor Shi Yin.

The secrets of the Sea of Fate, the connection between the Cauldron of Fate and the Untethered Boat, the story of the Battle of Silent Annihilation, the details of the Battle of Rulers, and the connection between the Negative Karma Destiny Demons and the Sea of Fate...

All these secrets would have been extraordinarily difficult to learn in the outside world. No amount of money would have been enough.

No one else could have learned all these secrets in such detail, yet True Progenitor Shi Yin had revealed them all, holding nothing back. He’d been earnest, sincere, and cooperative, too.

Of course Su Yi had a guilty conscience!

But in the end, he steeled his heart and said, “This is enough for now, but one day... I’ll grant you an opportunity to escape confinement as a reward.”

True Progenitor Shi Yin was flabbergasted, to the point that he almost dared not believe his ears. He almost thought he was hearing things!

All I did was share a few secrets, but that supreme being is giving me an opportunity? Am I dreaming?

A long time passed before he gradually came back to his senses. Only then did he realize that Su Yi’s divine sense had already departed the Cauldron of Fate.

He silently repeated the last words Su Yi had spoken before he’d left. His heart swelled with emotion, and he struggled to contain himself. Have I... finally waited long enough? Has my opportunity to escape finally arrived? The heavens haven’t mistreated me after all!

This was the legendary leader of the Chaos Fiends, the man who’d once opposed Sovereign Venerate Yi and the Primordial Divine Court, yet his eyes now overflowed with tears.

......

Meanwhile, atop their little boat, Su Yi put away the Cauldron of Fate and sank into thought.

Learning all of these secrets had come as an enormous shock to his perception of reality. A long time passed before he managed to calm down.

He hadn’t anticipated that he’d learn so much over the course of a single conversation, much less that their conversation would touch on the Nine Edicts of Heaven’s Will, Xiao Jian, and the Destiny Demons.

No matter what, Su Yi was finally certain of one thing: Heavenly Sovereign E and his backer were really after the Untethered Boat!

In the end, Su Yi reached a decision. “No need to change our plans. We’ll keep following them into the Blood Lotus Forbidden Domain.”

Both River Ancestors felt intense pressure bearing down on them. They couldn’t even imagine why Su Yi was so insistent despite knowing of the catastrophe lying in wait.

However, they knew better than to ask.

As polite as they were, Su Yi could sense their anxiety. He pondered briefly, then said, “If you wound up trapped there like Heavenly Sovereign Ku Xuan, I’d save you, too.”

Both River Ancestors quivered, suddenly moved. They now understood why Su Yi was so insistent, and they felt deeply gratified.

They suddenly realized that Destiny’s Chosen didn’t see them as slaves or pawns he could throw away at whim after all!

This was a sign of respect. To them, it was enough!

“Moreover, it’s not like I haven’t made any kind of preparations,” said Su Yi. “Just relax and follow me.”

“Got it!” Neither of them had any further misgivings. Even if they were headed straight for a battle to the death, they wouldn’t so much as furrow their brows.

They resumed their journey with River Ancestor Luo Yu steering the boat.

Meanwhile, Su Yi took out the wooden hairpin and sent a voice transmission to the medallion Heavenly Sovereign Qingyi was hiding in. “This little trinket is for you. It suits you.”

Heavenly Sovereign Qingyi snorted, “Those who offer unsolicited generosity are either thieves or bandits. You wouldn’t offer me such a gift without ulterior motives, so give it to me straight: what do you want me to do this time? Is there someone you want killed? Some crisis you want averted?”

The corners of Su Yi’s lips twitched. He swore to the heavens that he wasn’t after anything; this was purely a token of his appreciation.

Besides, since when had he hidden any sort of ulterior motives? And all that talk of thieves and bandits was grating to the ears, unbefitting of a Heavenly Sovereign!

“I just thought it would suit you. After all, it belonged to a Heavenly Sovereign of the early Primordial Era. But if you don’t want it, forget it,” said Su Yi.

But just as he was about to put the hairpin away, Hua Qingyi said with displeasure, “No sincerity at all! You haven’t even shown it to me yet. How do you even know if I’ll like it or not?”

Su Yi laughed. She really does say one thing and mean another!

A wisp of Hua Qingyi’s divine sense left the medallion, then enveloped the hairpin, White Hair.

But River Ancestors sensed this immediately, and their hearts shook, but Su Yi shook his head and gestured for silence before they could say anything.

The two River Ancestors instantly understood. Ah, that wisp of divine sense must belong to Heavenly Sovereign Qingyi!

They say that this long-lost Heavenly Sovereign fought alongside Su Yi in the Divine Wandering Continent, chasing Heavenly Sovereign Wen all the way to Limitless Palace. It’s hard not to admire someone like that.

But what they really admired was that this beautiful lady Heavenly Sovereign was willing to back Su Yi up. What man wouldn’t have envied Su Yi’s good fortune?

“Ee?” Hua Qingyi exclaimed. The hairpin vanished from Su Yi’s hands a moment later. “I want that hairpin. Do you have anything else to say?”

“I’m just glad you like it,” said Su Yi, rubbing his forehead. Miss Baa Baa Black Sheep’s tyrannical nature is on full display yet again.

“So, you have a bit of a conscience after all. This treasure really is extraordinary; it’s top-notch even among Heavenly Sovereign weapons. If I refine it, it’ll serve as an additional killer weapon in my arsenal. It’ll prove wondrously useful in battle.”

Heavenly Sovereign Qingyi’s voice was cold and icy, but there was no hiding her delight. She was obviously pleased with the hairpin.

“If you find any similar treasures in the future, you might as well give them to me. In exchange, I’ll naturally help you kill anyone you need killed,” Hua Qingyi promised.

Something occurred to Su Yi. “Actually, I recently acquired another, even more mysterious treasure. How about you take a look at it?”

He flipped his palm, and the dilapidated jade box appeared out of thin air. Hua Qingyi promptly examined it.

After a moment, her voice filled with uncharacteristic solemnity. She said slowly, “If I’m not mistaken, that box was forged out of Heaven-Severing Spirit Jade and sealed by a Heavenly Sovereign. Moreover, I suspect... that this is a Coffin for the Living!

“Hiding inside a coffin severs the presence of the heavens, creating a space no external powers can pry into or destroy. So long as the seal remains, the being inside can survive intact for all eternity!”

Su Yi couldn’t help but exclaim, “You mean there’s most likely... a Heavenly Sovereign sealed inside this box?”

The implications left him stunned. If that’s true, does that mean that one of the Heavenly Sovereigns who fought in the Battle of Rulers lived on by sealing himself in this coffin, surviving even as he was lost to the depths of the Sea of Fate?