Shrouding the Heavens: The Ultimate Daoist Venerable

Chapter 67: Later Years
Although Liang Yu rarely travels in the universe, his scattered inheritances and the Great Dao imprints that cover all the heavens still give him a very strong sense of presence.

Now, more than 29,000 years have passed in this life, and his Great Dao Imprint still hangs high in the heavens, inspiring countless generations of cultivators to look up in awe. Although Liang Yu did not do anything special, a large amount of faith power still gathered from all corners of the universe.

After all, even with immortality elixirs and Nine-Turn Immortal Pills, ordinary Dao-proving cultivators only exist for about 40,000 years. But the current Wuji Heavenly Venerable has been immortal for 50,000 years, which is simply a true myth.

For 50,000 years, most of the ancestors that the vast majority of beings in this universe can trace back to lived in the era of the Wuji Celestial Venerable, as if the Wuji Celestial Venerable of this generation had become eternal.

His past deeds, his face, his name—all have become blurred. Those who have seen the Supreme Being of Limitless Heaven have either passed away peacefully or sealed themselves as descendants. Apart from the Supreme Beings of Forbidden Zones, almost no one in this world has seen the Supreme Being of Limitless Heaven anymore.

Myths and legends alike will eventually fade and disappear completely over the long course of time. Nothing in this world is truly eternal; it's just that few people can traverse such a long period of time to witness those important, precious, and meaningful things turn to dust, until no one cares and they are completely forgotten.

When the Great Dao Imprint of the Supreme Celestial began to decay and rot, gradually emitting the Qi of Transformation, causing all the Daos in the universe to wail in sorrow, all living beings seemed to awaken from a dream, finally realizing that the Supreme Celestial was still a human, not an immortal or god.

Has this celestial being, who has suppressed all forbidden zones for 50,000 years and created numerous ancient scriptures passed down through generations, finally come to this day?

For a moment, all living beings in the universe were plunged into a complex emotion.

There is no fixed number of years during which the Dark Turmoil will occur; it depends on the state of those who have severed their own supreme beings.

During the fifty thousand years that Wuji Tianzun was alive, not to mention the Dark Turmoil, there was not even a large-scale interstellar war. It was a rare period of peace.

But what happens after the Supreme Celestial Venerable Wuji passes away? How many of those supreme beings will be unable to resist re-emerging to slaughter all living beings? How many great wars will be brewing from the contradictions that have accumulated over 50,000 years of peace? It is foreseeable that after the Supreme Celestial Venerable Wuji passes away, a chaotic era seems to be on the horizon.

Liang Yu got up and walked out of Wuji Immortal Mountain.

He once again displayed that irreversible aging, with an air of decay and death that could not be suppressed.

In the last few centuries of this life, he began to travel through the universe.

Along the way, he constantly pointed out the young cultivators he found promising. They might have strong physiques, high comprehension, or simply good luck, or even have a firm Dao heart and be able to calculate.

In addition to guiding younger generations, he also left new traditions in various parts of the universe, making cultivation in the universe even more prosperous.

He even personally created some chaotic pure lands, allowing some world races on the verge of extinction to migrate and thus be reborn.

Subsequently, he began to frequently venture into various wondrous places, using Origin Techniques to explore and modify special terrains. He visited almost all the more famous locations in the universe, except for those that had been self-destructed and sealed by their own supreme beings.

"Is the Celestial Venerable really about to pass away? Is he leaving a legacy for future generations and finding a burial place for himself?"

Countless cultivators throughout the universe couldn't help but feel a pang of sorrow. Even such a powerful Celestial Venerable had to come to this. For mortals, there is no greater tragedy than a hero's twilight years and a beautiful woman's hair turning white.

For cultivators, the fact that an invincible Celestial Venerable who had reigned for 50,000 years eventually succumbed to the erosion of time and met his end is undoubtedly the greatest tragedy.

Because the Supreme Celestial Venerable Wuji represents the pinnacle of their cultivation. If even he cannot become an immortal and achieve eternal life, then the others have no hope whatsoever.

However, some pessimists who know the details have begun to feel fear.

Because a significant number of past Dao-proving individuals chose to relinquish everything and sever their own lives to enter the forbidden zone during this increasingly perilous journey. If the Boundless Celestial Venerable were to do the same, he would likely become the greatest calamity for humanity. After all, this generation's Celestial Venerable not only possesses extraordinary strength and exceptional talent but also wields the immortal artifact, the Desolate Tower. If he were to transform into the forbidden zone, would future Dao-proving individuals still have any hope of stopping the dark turmoil and pacifying the forbidden zone?
While not all those who abdicate their supreme status will completely fall into depravity, the proportion is not low. Once bottom lines and principles are broken, they will be broken again.

Fortunately, although Liang Yu's breath was getting weaker and weaker, he showed no signs of wanting to kill himself.

At the end of his journey, Liang Yu returned to his hometown, Ziwei. The Ziwei star was now many times more prosperous than before.

Many of the geniuses of his generation who were suppressed by heaven and earth and the old predecessors who had endured countless years of hardship stood out after entering the universe and starry sky, becoming famous throughout a star field and making Ziwei Star famous.

Thus, with the emergence of Liang Yu, a contemporary Celestial Venerable, and dozens of other first- or second-rate quasi-Venerable experts in the universe, Ziwei Star quickly became more and more prosperous.

Now, fifty thousand years later, the Purple Star faintly resembles the majestic aura of the center of the universe.

Liang Yu went to visit his original sect, Lingguan Cave Heaven. By then, this force had become the Lingguan Holy Land, growing many times larger.

He silently found some of the most talented disciples and passed on some ancient scriptures and secret techniques in his dreams, but he did not appear in person.

Then, he left behind even more ancient scriptures and secret techniques on Ziwei Star.

Then, he left Ziwei Star and said to the empty starry sky, "You have crossed the line."

A command flag appeared, revealing wisps of dark yellow energy; this was the Xuanhuang Flag, an ultimate divine weapon.

Then, a divine thought manifested from the Xuanhuang Banner. Its figure was hazy and indistinct, with the two colors of Xuanhuang and Huanghuang intertwined, revealing a scene before the separation of heaven and earth. This person was none other than Xuanhuang Supreme, the master of the Xuanhuang Banner, who came from the Primordial Ancient Mine.

The Supreme Being Xuanhuang said, "As expected of the Heavenly Venerable, your eyes are truly discerning. I knew you couldn't hide it."

The desolate tower appeared above Liang Yu's head, and his tone turned cold: "Speak, give me a reason not to take action."

The Supreme Xuanhuang cupped his hands and said, "I have come here on behalf of the Primordial Ancient Mine to sincerely invite the Heavenly Venerable to join us. Since we sealed ourselves off, all of us from the Primordial Ancient Mine have been quietly awaiting the path to immortality and have never gone out to cause trouble. We are not on the same path as those Supreme Venerables. The Heavenly Venerable can rest assured. If the Heavenly Venerable does not believe us, he can go to the ancient mine to investigate and he will know for sure."

Liang Yu sighed, "Do you really believe you can make it onto the path to immortality?"

The Supreme Being of Xuanhuang smiled bitterly, "We are only trying to gain an opportunity to attack the Path to Immortality. It would be best if we could become immortals, but if we can't, then we'll die on the Path to Immortality. It's better than being born at the wrong time and not even having the chance to attack the Path to Immortality."

Liang Yu remained silent for a long time.

Some are born in Rome, while others spend their entire lives without ever reaching it. But the most despairing thing is not even having the right to go to Rome.

In the world of Shrouding the Heavens, the probability of encountering the path to immortality is extremely low, so low that the vast majority of those who seek enlightenment will never encounter it. Even if they do, it's either too early or too late.

As a result, many who have attained enlightenment have no choice but to sever their own lives and remain dormant in forbidden zones for hundreds of thousands or even millions of years, just to wait for the right time.

Within the forbidden zones, there are still many such supreme beings who manage to uphold their principles, remaining detached from worldly affairs, dedicating their remaining years solely to the path to immortality. If they cannot wait that long, they quietly pass away, refraining from harming living beings. However, they often do not live as long as those who instigate dark upheavals.

(End of this chapter)