Chapter 17 - 13: A Thousand Years of Solitude Comes to an End

Chapter 17: Chapter 13: A Thousand Years of Solitude Comes to an End

"ROAR!"

Beneath the thunderclouds, Lu Chen was enveloped by a surge of water-blue Spiritual Power, which transformed into a ferocious, semi-illusory Flood Dragon.

The Flood Dragon was not only incredibly lifelike, but the scales on its body also emitted specks of golden light, making it look like a real dragon emerging from the sea.

Lu Chen’s actual body was positioned at the head of the Flood Dragon. Gripping his sword, he harnessed the beast’s immense might to directly confront the thunderclouds above.

Almost at the exact moment the Flood Dragon’s shadow soared into the sky, the Thunder Power accumulated within the thunderclouds crashed down.

BOOM!

The violent thunder clashed with Lu Chen’s water-blue Flood Dragon, only to be instantly scattered by the beast’s sheer force.

The explosion produced a blinding light that instantly turned the underground tomb as bright as Bai Yu.

When the light dissipated, the water-blue Flood Dragon had already shattered the thunderclouds, diving toward Ye Chenglin below with an invincible presence.

In response, Ye Chenglin didn’t choose to give up; instead, he began drawing Talismans once again.

These Talismans orbited in front of him, swiftly forming several black-and-gold Talisman barriers.

However, these barriers failed to stop the ferocious water-blue Flood Dragon.

The moment they collided, the Talisman barriers shattered like fragile glass.

Watching Lu Chen break through the shields and ferociously charge toward him, Ye Chenglin’s eyes showed no fear of death. Instead, they revealed an indescribable sense of relief, as if he had deliberately been waiting for this day.

SHNK!

As the dust settled, the Magic Sword in Lu Chen’s hand pierced straight through Ye Chenglin’s chest, puncturing his heart.

The Copper Skin and Iron Bones of a Foundation Establishment Stage Magic Corpse ultimately couldn’t withstand Lu Chen’s Breaking Realm Swordsmanship.

Ye Chenglin looked down at the Magic Sword piercing his chest, his eyes gradually dimming as he felt the life slowly draining away from his body...

...

An unknown amount of time passed before Ye Chenglin suddenly heard a long-lost voice beside his ear.

"Little Lin, you never listened when I told you to cultivate properly on normal days, always sneaking down the mountain to drink. Now you’ve suffered the consequences, haven’t you?"

Ye Chenglin raised his head and realized that his master, Duofu Taoist, along with many of his senior brothers and sisters, had silently appeared by his side.

"Master, just say a few words less. Junior Brother just got slashed by someone’s sword, and you’re here taking pleasure in his misfortune. Is this how a master should act?"

The honest and warm-hearted First Senior Brother of Ten Thousand Talisman Peak stepped forward to speak up for Ye Chenglin. When Ye Chenglin first started at the entry-level, it was also this First Senior Brother who had taught him many principles of cultivation.

"Alright, alright. Although Little Lin was playful, didn’t he work hard later on? He lost this time, but he can just win it back next time," the Second Senior Sister of Ten Thousand Talisman Peak said softly, tucking her long hair behind her ear.

Duofu Taoist laughed and scolded in response, "Just keep spoiling him, you lot. If this brat could have reined in his temper back then, he wouldn’t have died and had his Dao vanish so early, failing to even reach Core Formation.

"It’s truly embarrassing to speak of. A dignified True Disciple of Ten Thousand Talisman Peak, ending up buried alongside a bunch of ordinary disciples. You really did make your master proud."

Faced with Duofu Taoist’s reprimand, Ye Chenglin wasn’t angry; instead, he laughed happily. However, as he laughed, his eyes gradually grew moist.

Looking at Duofu Taoist, he said in a hoarse voice, "Master, it’s me... your disciple... who embarrassed you."

Hearing this, Duofu Taoist, who had just been scolding him, immediately swatted his head with the Duster in his hand and said with dissatisfaction, "Embarrassing? Your master doesn’t think it’s embarrassing.

"Other than you, who else could endure this millennium of loneliness, silently standing guard here all along?"

As Duofu Taoist spoke, he crouched down and affectionately rubbed Ye Chenglin’s head. "You didn’t embarrass our Ten Thousand Talisman Peak. You make me prouder than anyone else."

Hearing this, Ye Chenglin felt a wave of profound relief, finally voicing the words he had suppressed in his heart for a thousand years.

"Master, I’m sorry. I’m too tired. I’m really too tired.

"Next time, I will definitely listen to you, cultivate properly, and not make you angry anymore.

"But this time, please allow my stubbornness. I really... can’t hold on any longer.

"Master, I’m sorry, I’m truly sorry..."

Ye Chenglin’s voice grew fainter and fainter as his head slowly slumped forward.

Wan Fu Daoist looked at him and said softly, "Sleep. Have a good sleep. For all these years... you have suffered."

Ye Chenglin gave no response, for he had already lost all signs of life.

That millennium-long loneliness had finally come to an end today.

Cyan Cloud Sect, seventieth generation True Disciple of Ten Thousand Talisman Peak, Ye Chenglin, passed away.

...

"Congratulations on your Ascension, fellow Daoist."

Lu Chen looked at the dead Ye Chenglin and performed a respectful Daoist bow.

To this day, Lu Chen had long since stopped treating True Cultivation as just a game.

Whether it was the nearly realistic experience or the fact that his in-game Cultivation was linked to reality, it was better to call this a real world rather than a game. In some place unknown to him, the Cyan Cloud Sect and Ye Chenglin must have truly existed.

Therefore, facing someone who kept his promise to guard the Sect’s tomb even after death, Lu Chen admired him from the bottom of his heart and found him worthy of this respectful bow.

As the battle concluded, the entire underground tomb fell into complete silence.

Lu Chen looked at his blood-stained arm and felt the continuous, excruciating pain radiating from within his body. He said in a low voice, "The Dragon Roar Heaven-Breaking Strike is ultimately still a bit too taxing for me right now.

"After this strike, not only are more than half of my meridians damaged, but my Spiritual Power has also been completely drained.

"In the future, unless absolutely necessary, it’s best not to use this Divine Technique. The Water Dragon Roar should be enough to solve most problems."

Indeed, although Lu Chen had fused the Water Dragon Roar and the Sharpness Skill into a new Divine Technique Skill, this didn’t mean that the Water Dragon Roar and Sharpness Skill had disappeared.

In a sense, the Dragon Roar Heaven-Breaking Strike could be understood as a combination Skill of the Water Dragon Roar and the Sharpness Skill.

He could still cast the individual Water Dragon Roar and Sharpness Skill normally, as he had cultivated both Skills bit by bit himself. Even though these two Skills had combined into a new Skill, Lu Chen’s comprehension of them still existed. Thus, he could naturally cast them freely.

[You have defeated the Foundation Establishment Stage Magic Corpse, Ye Chenglin. You have gained 3,000 Experience Points. You have obtained Soul Crystal Fragment (Green) *1. You have obtained Ten Thousand Talisman True Understanding - Fragment *1. You have obtained Special Tomb Key *1]

[Current Experience Points: 12,150]

...

Looking at the information on the game panel, Lu Chen felt a profound sense of finally seeing the light at the end of the tunnel.

After enduring so much hardship and dying so many times, he had finally pushed his Experience Points past the ten-thousand mark. It was also time to raise the Level of his Purple Mist Health Cultivation Technique.

He thought, "True Cultivation, add points!"

[You have consumed 9,999 Experience Points. Purple Mist Health Cultivation Technique has been upgraded to ’Breaking Realm’...]

[Purple Mist Health Cultivation Technique (Max): Breaking Realm]

[Effect: Purple Mist Body Refining. Extends lifespan by five hundred years, increases the maximum Spiritual Power limit by ten thousand points, and yields the Purple Mist Divine Fire]

...