Beyond the Timescape

Chapter 933: Immortal Cleansing

Time passed. Eventually, a month went by.

During that time, the imperial capital bustled with more noise and excitement than ever before. Although it wasn’t accurate to say that literally every person had a smile on their face, there was no doubt that most people were very stirred up. There was less illegal activity in the marketplaces, and more peace, order, and kindness than there had been among humans in hundreds of years.

There were four reasons.

The first reason was Xu Qing’s glorious return. Back when the commoners spontaneously welcomed him with loud cheering, it was largely due to that glory. When he was appointed as a heavenly king, the commotion grew even more intense. As the saying goes, fame follows merit.

Humans had been under immense pressure for many years. Although the Dawning Suns allowed everyone to hold their heads high, most people still felt depressed deep in their hearts. A decline of tens of thousands of years was not something that even Dawning Suns could get rid of easily.

After all, there were some very powerful nonhumans out there, and everyone from cultivators to mortals knew that. Humans, whether in terms of fleshly body or innate abilities, were simply not on par. The latter was especially noteworthy.

For some reason, the vast majority of human chosen didn’t have any sort of innate ability, unless they acquired them via destined opportunity. But that was different from being born with such abilities. It was almost as if modern humans just didn’t have any sort of inherent divine abilities. However, the historical record made it clear that in the time of Ancient Emperor Dark Serenity, humans absolutely did have an inborn innate ability.

It was called... the Spirit Ancestor Transformation. Nowadays, that innate ability didn’t seem to be anywhere in the human bloodline.

Because of that, Xu Qing’s rise to prominence was like a wave of heat that blasted through humankind. In the final analysis, humankind... needed a hero. Xu Qing came along at the right time and in the right circumstances, and made his debut to the entire species.

As far as the second reason for the clamor of excitement in the imperial capital, it was because of the Firemoon Darkheavens’ subsidiary species, the Whitemarshes and the Saias.

The previous month, those two species sent high-level representatives to humankind to finalize a 1,000-year peace treaty. Things like that had happened many times in the era of Ancient Emperor Dark Serenity, and it ultimately led to humans conquering all of Revered Ancient.

But after Ancient Emperor Dark Serenity left, humans steadily fell into decline. Every treaty they entered was as the passive party. But this time it was different. In the imperial capital, cultivators and mortals alike felt the glory of their species, and were starting to get increasingly excited. The students in the Imperial University were high-spirited and full of mettle. Morale surged.

The third reason for the atmosphere in the capital was that the Clear and Bright solar term was coming. Ancestral sacrifices were a common thing among all humans, and households everywhere were making preparations for their own sacrificial offerings. [1]

The imperial edict related to the ancestral sacrifices was actually the fourth reason for the atmosphere.

The emperor would carry out ancestral sacrifices!

The ancestor of the emperor was Ancient Emperor Dark Serenity, who lived during humankind’s peak level of glory. According to custom, it was only when something momentous happened that the emperor would carry out such ancestral sacrifices. Unless something momentous happened, a minor sacrifice would be offered every 1,000 years, and a major sacrifice would be offered every 10,000 years. The most recent sacrifice was 800 years in the past.

But now... the imperial edict stated directly why sacrifices were being offered 200 years early. The news spread very rapidly through the Imperial Region, the seven other counties controlled by humans, as well as the regions of Holytide, Nightspirit, and Nightshade. The news even reached the Moonrite Region. The date was set at 100 days after the edict was issued. When “the Big Dipper points to Yi and Bright” was mentioned in the imperial edict, it referred to Clear and Bright. A month had already passed, which left only two more months. Humans everywhere were making preparations.

As for Xu Qing, he only left his greater spirit mansion once during the month that passed. The place he visited was one of the Five Greater Celestial Divisions, specifically, the Swordsage Division. It was the headquarters for all swordsages in human lands, and it wasn’t Xu Qing’s first time visiting it. But everything about this visit was different compared to the last time. All of the swordsages presented themselves in ranks, and though their expressions were solemn, all looked at Xu Qing with excitement in their eyes.

Every glorious thing Xu Qing had accomplished was related to one of his identities. He was a swordsage. And he was the bearer of the sword for this generation. He bore The Emperor’s Sword as he walked the world of mortals. That identity gave him a level of prestige among swordsages that was difficult to describe.

There were eight deputy sword lords, and all looked very solemn as they bowed to Xu Qing. As for the grand sword lord, he also served as a heavenly king. He was King Cloudwar, and he was present to personally receive Xu Qing.

“King Skycrusher,” he said with a faint smile, clasping hands respectfully to Xu Qing.

Considering that Xu Qing was dealing with a heavenly king, there was no way he would be lax in etiquette. He also clasped hands respectfully, then explained why he had come. He wanted to pay respects to Grand Emperor Swordsage. It was a request that no one in the entire Imperial Region would be comfortable making, with the exception of the emperor himself. And if anyone had made that request other than the emperor, King Cloudwar would have rejected it. He wouldn’t even have made an exception for King Firecrusher or the imperial preceptor. But Xu Qing was different. He was essentially the successor of the Grand Emperor, and because of that, was even more closely connected to him than the Swordsage Division itself.

As a result, King Cloudwar only considered the request for a brief moment before nodding. Then he personally escorted Xu Qing into the restricted area in the Swordsage Division. King Cloudwar stopped outside of the private chamber, and stood there with a solemn expression. Not even he dared to enter.

Xu Qing took a deep breath and walked in. He had questions that he wanted to ask the Grand Emperor. Whether it was about his thoughts on what was to come on Planet Ancient Emperor, or the transformations to the Emperor’s Sword and the emperor’s corpse he had experienced, all were unclear areas to him.

There weren’t many people in the imperial capital that Xu Qing truly trusted. But his Eldest Brother couldn’t provide the answers he needed, and his Master wasn’t around. Therefore, Xu Qing came up with the idea of asking Grand Emperor Swordsage for help.

A few days later, Xu Qing left with a thoughtful look on his face. He had some answers.

When it came to the first question, the Grand Emperor had remained silent for an entire day before giving Xu Qing a very simple answer.

“Wait and see.”

In response to the second question, the Grand Emperor thought for two days before saying, “Perhaps it’s just fate. If so, then the sword... will naturally respond to your heart and mind. Remember what I told you the first time we met? Never change.”

As Xu Qing thought about what the Grand Emperor had told him, he found sadness rising within him. He had seen clearly that Grand Emperor Swordsage was in a much weaker state than before. Although it wasn’t quite appropriate to say that he was like an oil lamp about to run out of fuel, he was getting closer to that stage.

The Grand Emperor... is struggling to hold on....

When Xu Qing thought about Grand Emperor Swordsage’s life, he sighed. Clasping hands, he bowed deeply to the private chamber.

After returning to his greater spirit mansion, he didn’t step out again for the rest of the month.

At first, Erniu came often to visit. He and Xu Qing researched the sageheaven god vines as well as the scattered parts of the puppets. Sadly, they never achieved any success. Erniu wasn’t ready to give up, though. He took the puppet parts away in the hopes of finding someone who could help put them back together. At the same time, he didn’t give up on trying to find Master Seventh.

In the days that followed, Xu Qing spent most of his time in the spirit pool, seeking enlightenment of the godly authority in his void soil. The holy fardark nectar was very helpful during the process. It was similar to the help that a Foundation Establishment cultivator could give to a Qi Condensation cultivator seeking enlightenment. It was deeply profound.

Every time Xu Qing sought enlightenment, he was able to completely clear his mind. And he was able to proceed from the most basic foundation of Void Returning into a much stabler and higher place. Progress in this level varied from person to person. Some people might succeed in ten years, others might need decades. With the holy fardark nectar, Xu Qing’s progress was rapid.

As he worked on his cultivation in the spirit pool, and as he absorbed more and more of the holy fardark nectar, he would occasionally find himself in a very profound and mysterious state. It always seemed to happen by accident.

The sixth time it occurred, Xu Qing started to realize what was going on.

I should go to the Xeno-Immortal School and go through their legacy jade slips again.

He had the feeling that strange state was definitely worth further study. And studying had been something Xu Qing enjoyed from a young age. It didn’t matter that his cultivation had reached such a high level; he still had that same thirst for knowledge.

The ancestral sacrifices were still sixty days away when Xu Qing left his greater spirit mansion and went to the Imperial University. Soon, he walked into the Xeno-Immortal School. His arrival caused a big uproar in the university in general, and an even bigger uproar in the Xeno-Immortal School.

All of the students looked at him worshipfully as the schoolmaster received him formally. This schoolmaster was the very one who had used Xu Qing’s Xeno-Immortal soul thread as his own foundation. Upon laying eyes on Xu Qing, his expression was one of pure astonishment. Last month when Xu Qing returned, the schoolmaster had spotted him through the crowd. At that time, Xu Qing seemed like a spectacular, unsheathed blade. But this time when he laid eyes on Xu Qing, he couldn’t assess his cultivation base at all. In fact, he had no fluctuations whatsoever, to the point where he seemed mortal.

In fact, as Xu Qing approached, the schoolmaster could just barely detect a fragrant aroma coming from him.

Immortal cleansing??

The schoolmaster inhaled sharply. There was something else he could sense. Though Xu Qing still seemed mortal, there was also something indescribably profound and mysterious about him, something that seemed like it was part of his soul. The schoolmaster had no way of knowing the cause. As a matter of fact, Xu Qing didn’t really understand it either. The reality was that holy fardark nectar did more than just help with enlightenment.

Using it for long periods of time would result in imperceptible changes and indescribable benefits. But fardark nectar was rare even years in the past, much less now. And even more relevant... this was fardark nectar that had percolated for tens of thousands of years to become holy fardark nectar!

Furthermore... other people who had the chance to use holy fardark nectar wouldn’t use as much as Xu Qing had used. They would treat it like a precious treasure, and would occasionally use a single drop when seeking enlightenment. No one would do what Xu Qing had done, which was add a drop to his spirit pool every day, and then bathe in it. Behavior like that would obviously increase the rate in which the holy fardark nectar’s marvelous qualities were revealed.

And thus, as the schoolmaster stood there with his heart pounding, Xu Qing climbed to the top floor of the Xeno-Immortal School. That was where all of the school of thought’s ancient records were housed. Though some were copied inscriptions, many were originals.

Xu Qing went into seclusion as he studied the records. He went through each jade slip in great detail. His goal was to gain complete and utter mastery of all the Xeno-Immortal School legacies and histories.

That’s the only way I’ll be able to create something new....

After some thought, he took out some holy fardark nectar. It wasn’t the original nectar, but rather a spirit elixir he had created by mixing it with spirit water. After taking a drink, his mind became very clear, and he immersed himself in studying.

In a flash, a month passed.

At that point, an imperial edict was sent to Xu Qing, by means of an imperial guard who raced into the Xeno-Immortal School in the imperial university. That was when Xu Qing’s session of seclusion ended.

1. ’Clear and Bright’ (transliterated Qingming) corresponds to a time period in spring. There has already been one volume of this novel with that name, specifically, Volume 6. Clear and Bright is also associated with Qingming Festival (also called Tomb-Sweeping Festival, Pure Brightness Festival, or you could also call it Clear and Bright Festival). It’s a traditional festival in which families visit the tombs of their deceased family members to clean the tombs and offer sacrifices to the ancestors. Solar terms link. Qingming/Tomb Sweeping Festival info. Culturally speaking, it makes perfect sense that the aforementioned ancestral sacrifices would take place during this time period, and in fact, on the specific festival day historically associated with such sacrifices. ☜