Immortality: Starting with a grave, I'm invincible when burying corpses.

After that day, Mu An and Mu Ling'er stayed in Chengle Ancient City for a while longer.

The two spent the New Year in the ancient city and embarked on their journey again as spring was about to begin.

After touring the deserted Starfall Domain, in July of the fourth year of the Five Kingdoms, the two re-entered the territory of the Apocalypse Domain.

Vast snow-capped mountains, pristine sacred lakes, sealed ley lines, magma on the mountainside, hot lakes in the snow-capped mountains...

As one of the most unique ecosystems in the Nine Realms, the Great Snow Realm brought Mu Ling'er a rather romantic experience.

Even though she had been there alone before, she still had a lot of fun this time.

On the snowy mountain plains, the two left behind countless memories.

……

The fifth year of the Five Kingdoms period, August.

Led by the immortal immortal Fu Yuan and the literary sage Meng Yan, they personally led a team to rescue the trapped Tianqi warship.

After half a month, the Tianqi warships withdrew to Jiaozhou.

……

Five years into the Five Kingdoms period, the border area between the Heavenly Revelation Domain and the Myriad Spirits Domain.

After both sides paid a heavy price in the war, the former northern border, now the Lingbei Empire, signed a ceasefire agreement with the demon race of the Wanling Domain.

The thirteen eastern states are divided in two, with the Changkong Mountains, located within the territory of the thirteen eastern states, serving as the boundary.

The area east of the Changkong Mountains belongs to the Demon Clan, while the area west of the mountains belongs to the Lingbei Empire.

The area east of the mountain range is mostly mountainous and riverine, suitable for the survival of the demon race, while the area west of the mountain range is mostly plains and hills, suitable for the settlement of the human race.

The human and demon races reached completely different conclusions.

The demon race said, "This desolate plain is so barren that we can't even find a single prey. What's the point of robbing it?"

Lingbei said, "This desolate mountain area would lose money every year even if we built an ethnic settlement, so what's the point?"

When the agreement was signed, both parties felt they had gotten a great deal.

In the same year, the Datongdao sect completely occupied the coastal area on the south side of Tianqi Domain.

As the controlled territory expanded rapidly, management could not keep up with the pace of expansion, leading to various chaotic situations.

Wan Shu ordered a temporary ceasefire and formulated a three-year plan to reorganize the internal affairs, aiming to achieve actual control over the occupied areas within three years.

Meanwhile, southern Xinjiang, Qishan Road, and Dongqi have all entered a state of full-scale war.

Because Qishan Road is located between Southern Xinjiang and Eastern Qi, Mu Yong had to deploy defenses on both the western and eastern fronts simultaneously, shrinking the defensive line to cope with the military offensive of the two countries.

Furthermore, due to Dongqi's repeated attempts to retake Qi'an City, Nanjiang and Dongqi also engaged in fierce battles near Qi'an City, which is located further north.

While the three sides were engaged in battle, both Nanjiang and Dongqi dispatched several small-scale armies to launch harassing attacks against Datongdao.

There was no other meaning; it was simply that I couldn't stand Datongdao reaping the benefits without doing so.

While the rest of us are fighting, you're just quietly making a fortune?

What does that mean?

None of the three warring empires took the current Great Harmony Sect seriously, and even so, they would not allow any force to grow stronger in the chaos.

If we're going to fight, we'll fight together; no one should try to take advantage of the situation.

……

In the sixth year of the Five Kingdoms period, in the seventh month.

No sooner had the war with the demon race ended than the northern army began its southward march.

An army of one million marched south from the north and captured the poorly defended Dingzhou in one fell swoop, with its advance reaching Qi'an City.

A fierce struggle ensued between the Southern Frontier, the Northern Border, and the Eastern Qi over the ownership of Qi'an City.

……

The seventh year of the Five Kingdoms period, the ninth day of the ninth month, night.

Changzhou, the former site of Datong Academy.

Wan Shu sat alone in the old-fashioned bookstore, lost in thought.

The study was small, but even with only one oil lamp lit, it was not dim.

The table, which was usually piled high with books, was cleaned spotless today, with only a yellowed old book placed in the middle.

Wan Shu leaned back in the chair covered with a plush carpet, staring blankly out the window.

Compared to decades ago, the ginkgo trees in the courtyard have grown a bit taller, casting a golden sea over the small courtyard.

Perhaps thinking of something, Wan Shu suddenly stood up from the table, holding the book of universal harmony in one hand and an oil lamp in the other, and slowly walked out of the room.

Beneath the tall ginkgo tree, Wan Shu raised an oil lamp, gazing up at the golden expanse overhead.

Under the lamplight, the dense foliage casts shadowy patterns, swaying gently in the evening breeze.

After standing under the tree for a quarter of an hour, Wan Shu's furrowed brow finally relaxed.

She took two steps forward and touched the thick trunk of the ginkgo tree with her aged hand.

"You're so grown up now..."

"Time flies... I vaguely remember when I first planted you, you were so small, only up to my knees."

The day I planted you, the master said, "You will live a very, very long time, and you will witness the lives of generation after generation."

Wan Shu's smile deepened, and through the ginkgo tree in front of her, she seemed to see scenes from the past.

"At the time, I didn't really believe it. It's just a tree, how long could it live?"

"We are Celestial Martial Saints, how could we possibly outlive you?"

"That's what I thought back then, but I didn't tell my husband. I just wanted to have a good competition with you to see who could live longer."

As she spoke, Wanshu patted the branches of the ginkgo tree and let out a soft laugh.

"How can you live so long? You insist on competing with me, not only outliving my husband, but now you're even going to outlive me..."

Perhaps she was a little tired from talking, Wan Shu simply sat down, leaning against the tree trunk and placing the oil lamp beside her.

The dim light illuminated her aged face and her full head of white hair.

A gentle evening breeze rustled the leaves, sending a few golden leaves landing on Wanshu's shoulder.

Looking at the fallen leaves that had landed on her, Wan Shu sighed softly. She patted the mud off herself and muttered to herself.

"It's no use being reluctant to let me go. Birth, aging, sickness, and death are the natural course of life. I can't live as long as you."

"But don't worry, there will be other people watering you every day and taking good care of you, so you can grow taller and bigger, see farther, and witness more things..."

As she spoke, Wan Shu's voice became somewhat hoarse and indistinct.

"I really envy you. You don't have to think about anything and you've lived this long..."

After a few barely audible murmurs, Wanshu laughed again.

"Do you know?"

"I have a wish."

"A wish that will take a very, very long time to come true."

"I want to see the utopian world you spoke of, the beautiful future that you and I have spent our whole lives pursuing..."

Looking up at the golden sea of ​​leaves overhead, Wan Shu raised her right hand.

She saw golden leaves through the gaps between her fingers, and then starry sky above through the gaps between the branches.

"This is my wish, and it is also your wish."

"A long, long time ago, when my master was leaving, he entrusted this wish to me. Now that I am about to leave as well, I would like to entrust this wish to you as well."

"Little Ginkgo, you must live well, live for a thousand years, live for ten thousand years..."

"It may take hundreds of years, it may take thousands of years, it may take even longer. I don't know when our dreams will come true... But I believe that as long as generation after generation works hard, one day our wishes will become reality."

"When that time comes, please take us with you to see that beautiful world..."

The sound gradually faded, turning into a low murmur.

Amidst the rustling of falling leaves, the figure beneath the tree swayed to one side.

"Sir... Wanshu misses you..."

Golden leaves drifted down in the wind, turning into a thin blanket that covered her body.

……

In the seventh year of the Five Kingdoms period, on the ninth day of the ninth month, Wan Shu, the leader of the Datong Dao, passed away.

In accordance with his will, he was buried under a ginkgo tree at the former site of Datong Academy.