Chapter 537 Part 1

Chapter 537 Part 1: The First Ending (1)

The Imperial Capital of Zhong Province.

When Qiao Mu, Qiao Canxue, and Qiao Feixian re-entered the Return Ruins.

The remaining soldiers of Great Qin City returned to the Imperial Capital, bringing news to the old former Great Yan Emperor Wuping about the death of Founding Emperor Yan and the origins of the following True Immortal Disaster.

It was already nighttime.

On a hillside outside the Imperial Capital.

The bright moon hung high in the sky, casting a silver light all around; a gentle breeze stirred the pines, causing the branches and leaves to rustle softly.

"No thoughts, no worries…"

Wu Qizheng showed no joy or sorrow on his face as he practiced boxing under the moonlight, moving fluidly and naturally.

He was practicing the Long Life Fist.

The Long Life Fist was long ago combined by Qiao Mu with the "Xumi Mountain King Sutra" to create the "Human Path Sutra," but the path of the Long Life Fist still exists and is widely spread among people.

Wu Qizheng practiced his punches over and over, seemingly forgetting himself, as natural as the gentle breeze in the mountains or the bright moon in the sky, becoming a part of all that is natural.

"Mr. Wu is really in high spirits, still practicing punches at this hour; it is truly amazing."

Some martial artists who survived from the Soul Predicting Path Immortal Gate battlefield saw this scene and expressed their admiration.

Wu Qizheng was not an ordinary martial artist, but the "One Sage," standing at the pinnacle of martial arts in Jiu Province for fifty years, as the most mysterious pillar reaching the sky.

In the past, if they saw Wu Qizheng practicing punches, they would naturally be excited and thrilled.

But now, they had no excitement or interest at all.

"But speaking of which, does practicing punches still matter at this point?" someone sighed.

Upon learning about the True Immortal Disaster and the Great Collapse behind it, even the most battle-hardened lion could not help but feel disheartened; this is a natural human reaction.

Just then, Wu Qizheng stood with his fists by his side, releasing a breath like an arrow, and slowly walked towards them.

"Did the martial ancestor hear that?" The group of martial artists felt a bit tense.

But some were also looking over, curious to hear Wu Qizheng’s opinion.

Having seen the True Immortal in action and knowing about the Great Collapse behind it, these earthly martial artists inevitably felt a loss of fighting spirit; they also wished to hear what the great martial artist Wu Qizheng had to say.

Wu Qizheng approached them and patted the shoulder of the person who had just spoken.

"You are right; practicing martial arts right now is indeed useless. In just a day or two, who can make great progress?"

The person had already prepared himself to be scolded by Wu Qizheng but was taken aback instead.

"Do you all remember the Founding Emperor Yan who died a few days ago?" Wu Qizheng began.

"No matter how skilled one is, even someone as powerful as the True Immortal cannot do everything; there will always be times when they are helpless."

"Common people call this a natural disaster, fate, something beyond human control."

"Under this natural disaster and fate, if you say there is any use… then there really is none."

"Since there is no use, I will naturally do whatever I want."

After saying this, Wu Qizheng ignored their reactions and started to fight again.

"Senior Wu is really calm…" the few martial artists exclaimed.

In the past few days, no True Immortal has appeared in the land of Jiu Province.

But other vast worlds, like the Wilderness Realm, are different.

The Great Collapse is coming; chaos reigns in the human world, and the border between the Jiu Province and other realms is no longer clear.

In these few days, as the worlds overlapped, there were indeed more than one True Immortal who mistakenly entered the Jiu Province great world from other large realms like the Wilderness Realm.

However, as soon as these True Immortals realized they were trapped in the Jiu Province realm, their faces changed, and they left as quickly as possible.

The many worlds is just a summary; there are not only a thousand large worlds. Even if Qiao Mu is not here, why would they choose to stay in the Jiu Province great world?

Therefore, during these few days, the soon-to-collapse Jiu Province great world fell into a brief period of peace.

"Senior Wu is indeed very calm; I will practice my punches too." A martial artist watched for a long time, seemed to understand something, and then began to practice his punches.

But he had just started to move.

Wu Qizheng, who was punching, suddenly stopped and looked up at the sky.

At this moment, the sky suddenly cracked open, dense red lightning like a net split the sky, and a fierce wind howled, tearing apart the clouds. The ground beneath them also trembled and cracked.

Wu Qizheng’s eyes widened slightly.

He had actually seen such a strange scene before.

When Qiao Mu used the Sky Collapsing Fist, a shadow of destruction appeared.

This shadow came from the sights Qiao Mu had witnessed during his fifteen years of traveling across many realms, and now that this scene reappeared, it meant…

"The Great Collapse is coming," Wu Qizheng said, standing with his fists at his sides, his voice hoarse.

Although he had mentally prepared himself, when the moment actually arrived, he still felt uneasy.

The ground beneath his feet cracked as it shook, mountains collapsed, and the earth tilted.

Further away, there were thunderous sounds of crashing waves and the ocean roared, with tons of seawater plunging into an unfathomable abyss.

Zhong Province is not by the sea and cannot see the ocean; it is inland.

Yet today, Wu Qizheng and the others found themselves in the capital of Zhong Province, witnessing the roaring sea—this was, in a literal sense, the sinking of Jiu Province.

A rainbow light flashed across the sky, and Immortal Diyuan controlled the Sky River Immortal Boat to land on the hillside next to the Imperial Capital, looking quite unhappy.

The Empress Reincarnation that she had been desperately searching for had already collided with Qiao Mu and entered the Return Ruins, and they had not yet returned today, leaving her, a True Immortal who had lost her divine body, in a difficult position.

"Given the situation, we should escape first," Immortal Diyuan decided, as beams of celestial light shone down to gather the martial artists who had not yet left the Imperial Capital.

The Sky River Immortal Boat is a genuine divine artifact, equipped to hold many people temporarily.

During her fifteen years of traveling through the realms, Immortal Diyuan had often managed to escape danger with Qiao Mu in the face of great crises.

Though Qiao Mu and his companion, the chubby cat, were not by her side now, she was quite familiar with the route and should be able to leave safely before the collapse of the Jiu Province world, unless something unexpected happened.

But just as she thought of this, a sudden impulse hit her.

At that moment, the sky was abruptly torn open by a gigantic hand even larger than the Immortal Boat, which crashed down along with the battered Sky River Immortal Boat, smashing to the ground.

In an instant, the Sky River Immortal Boat was severely damaged, almost completely breaking in half.

Immortal Diyuan’s face was pale. Now she was like the spirit of the Immortal Boat. The Sky River Immortal Boat had suffered heavy damage. Not only was she unable to escape, but she also knew there was no hope of leaving the Jiu Province realm.

"It’s the Undead Immortal Lord. He has indeed returned." Immortal Diyuan looked up at the sky, feeling despair in her heart.

At her peak, Immortal Diyuan was only a True Immortal for thirty thousand years. By chance, she escaped with her life from Immortal Lord Qingxuan, let alone facing the returning Undead Immortal Lord again?

Besides, even if she could completely kill the Undead Immortal Lord, what would that achieve?

With every death, he would return stronger. Even Qiao Mu, who also had the power of immortality, could only drive him back temporarily by combining the strength of many bodies.

Now, with the Undead Immortal Lord appearing again, did she really want to challenge such a strong enemy?

"Have I arrived too late?" Immortal Diyuan could only force a bitter smile.

She didn’t really care much about the lives of others besides her own. However, she was already tied to Qiao Mu’s boat. Now, there was only one path to darkness. What chance was there for her to escape from the Great Collapse alone?

At this moment, the mountains were collapsing, and the sea roared. The cracked Immortal Boat was falling towards the ocean, along with the tilting ground.

Not to mention the Undead Immortal Lord is still here, even without him intervening, this Immortal Boat, which is about to break apart, cannot escape the cataclysm of this Jiu Province.

It was just at that moment when the roar of the waves filled the air like thunder.

A mighty sound of sword cries echoed through the sky, rising from the depths of the sea, cutting through both the endless ocean and the sky, and the newly appeared Undead Immortal Lord was swallowed by the sword light in the blink of an eye.

With just one strike, the Undead Immortal Lord, who had just revived, shattered into pieces, disappearing inch by inch.

Immortal Diyuan felt a tremor in his heart; True Immortals are fundamentally different from earthly beings—they have no weaknesses, and only complete annihilation of body and soul leads to true death.

Under that sword strike that tore through the heavens, the Undead Immortal Lord’s body continuously vanished in the sword light until it was completely consumed… This was a method that Immortal Diyuan had never seen or heard of before.

He looked up towards the shining sword light.

There, in the hollow of the sea, Qiao Mu stepped out from the void, closely followed by Qiao Canxue and Qiao Feixian.

Although it had only been a day or two since they last met, Qiao Mu appeared somehow different from that day.