As soon as they returned to the Dao Lord’s residence, Luo Caishi threw her arms around Lan Xiaobu, overcome with emotion. Reuniting with him, especially in his divine realm’s Dao Court, unleashed the feelings she’d kept buried inside.
Poor Gu Dao only managed a few calls of “Lord Bu” before being tossed outside the cave abode.
For three straight days, Lan Xiaobu and Luo Caishi didn’t leave the cave.
“Xiaobu, I’m so glad I chose to leave the Immortal Realm. Otherwise, I wouldn’t be with you now,” Luo Caishi said, nestled in his arms, still overwhelmed. She knew these moments of closeness with Lan Xiaobu would be rare. Soon, she’d have to retreat into seclusion to boost her strength. Looking at Longevity Sacred Dao City, it was filled with Quasi-Saints and Saints. Even the two gate guards were at the Unity God realm. Her Divine Monarch cultivation meant nothing here.
Besides, Lan Xiaobu had told her about the struggle for eternal life. If her strength remained weak, the Great Desolate Divine Realm might not hold, possibly even refined into karmic proof by someone. She didn’t aim to match Lan Xiaobu, but she at least didn’t want to drain his focus.
“Caishi, I brought Su Cen here not long ago,” Lan Xiaobu said, knowing some things had to be addressed.
“What…” Luo Caishi was startled, then asked, “Wasn’t Su Cen on Earth? She didn’t marry?”
She’d sent the Blue Wing Star to Su Cen for her engagement.
Lan Xiaobu explained not just Su Cen’s three lifetimes but also Zuo Wanyin’s story. Truthfully, he hadn’t intended for either Su Cen or Zuo Wanyin at first, but it happened nonetheless. He couldn’t explain it—just laid it out plainly for Luo Caishi.
Luo Caishi stared at him, dazed, before saying after a long pause, “If this were before, I’d definitely be upset. But after enduring endless years, I’m content just to be with the one I love.”
She couldn’t claim to feel no anger at all, but after surviving the torment of countless years, she genuinely didn’t mind anymore. Reuniting with Lan Xiaobu in the Great Desolate Divine Realm was enough.
Compared to Su Cen’s cycles of reincarnation, she’d lived continuously in the Five Universes Immortal Realm. What was there to be dissatisfied about?
One thought she didn’t voice: she was secretly glad Su Cen hadn’t regained her memories and given Lan Xiaobu to her back then. Otherwise, dust to dust, earth to earth—she’d have faded into the cosmos long ago. She wouldn’t have minded that; death was inevitable. But she knew if she hadn’t met Lan Xiaobu, she’d never have loved another or found a lifelong companion. To die without ever loving would’ve been her greatest regret.
Lan Xiaobu still felt a pang of guilt. As he tried to say more, Luo Caishi hugged him again, her voice ethereal, “I want a child of our own.”
…
Longevity Sacred Dao City grew tense again. Though Lan Xiaobu said nothing, the Dao Court officials were on edge.
First, how had Zhu Ku entered the Great Desolate Divine Realm? Outsiders weren’t allowed, and even native cultivators needed rigorous identity checks—not just hiding somewhere would do. If a cultivator was from the realm but lurked in a corner, neither registering with the Great Desolate identity nor leaving their aura in the Dao Court’s Identity Hall, they’d be expelled if caught. If they committed crimes, they’d be executed outright.
Zhu Ku clearly had no identity registration or aura record, meaning the Dao Court had slipped up.
With Zhu Ku in the Dao Lord’s hands, they didn’t know how he’d gotten in. Regardless, the realm launched a sweeping check. Any unregistered cultivator would be found and cast out.
…
After several days entwined with Lan Xiaobu, Luo Caishi reluctantly chose to retreat and cultivate. She knew he had to leave—staying wouldn’t improve his strength. If his power didn’t grow, the Great Desolate Divine Realm had no future.
“Lord Bu, can you take me with you this time?” Gu Dao, who’d been waiting outside, sidled up with a fawning grin as Lan Xiaobu emerged.
Lan Xiaobu snorted, “If your cultivation were higher, would Caishi have been threatened? Stay here and cultivate. You can’t leave until you reach the First Turn.”
Gu Dao’s face fell. If it wasn’t diligent, then what about the mistress, still at Divine Monarch level? But it didn’t dare say that aloud.
Fortunately, the realm’s primal energy was dense, and the rules abundant—it should reach the First Turn soon.
“Take this. Prove the Dao quickly and protect the mistress. You’ve got two mistresses here. If either suffers the slightest harm, I’ll hold you accountable when I return,” Lan Xiaobu said, tossing a ring to Gu Dao.
“Rest assured, Lord Bu, I’ve got it covered,” Gu Dao said, snatching the ring eagerly and thumping its chest.
After Gu Dao went into seclusion, Lan Xiaobu entered an empty room and released Zhu Ku.
“Dao Lord Lan, we can talk. Killing me only vents your anger—it won’t help your Dao,” Zhu Ku said, unwilling to accept his fate. He even regretted acting too soon.
He hadn’t come to Longevity Sacred Dao City to capture Luo Caishi. He’d planned to buy resources for his Third-Turn ascent. But seeing her upon arrival, he couldn’t resist.
His deep hatred for Lan Xiaobu, plus his intel that Lan Xiaobu wasn’t in the realm, made him act when he spotted Luo Caishi.
“Tell me about this ‘secret of the Great Dao’ you understand,” Lan Xiaobu said calmly.
“Swear to let me go, and I’ll tell you immediately,” Zhu Ku said firmly.
Lan Xiaobu replied coolly, “Then don’t bother.”
As he spoke, a terrifying aura of death enveloped Zhu Ku, who felt his soul tearing apart. If he didn’t realise Lan Xiaobu was about to soul-search him, he’d be a fool.
Zhu Ku frantically tried to detonate his soul, but under Lan Xiaobu’s Dao charm, he couldn’t.
“Dao Lord Lan, stop! I’ll talk. Just let me die quietly after,” Zhu Ku shouted, no longer daring to bargain.
Being soul-searched wouldn’t just bring immense pain—he had things he didn’t want Lan Xiaobu to know.
Lan Xiaobu paused, but his faint killing intent and Dao pressure still locked Zhu Ku in place. Zhu Ku sighed inwardly. He’d hoped to speak while dissolving his Dao memories, but Lan Xiaobu had anticipated that, leaving him no chance.
He regretted not destroying his memories the day Lan Xiaobu captured him, clinging to the faint hope of being spared.
“Your Dao is impressive, but I sense it’s not a true Great Dao. It might reach higher levels, but it’s not a top-tier Dao, nor can it outmatch peers in combat…” Zhu Ku began.
Lan Xiaobu frowned. Zhu Ku seemed sincere, yet he could crush peers effortlessly. The Fallen Saint, Xi’e—he’d handled them… Wait.
He hadn’t fought Xi’e—she’d left, perhaps not out of fear but for other reasons. The Fallen Saint? That was in his Great Desolate Divine Realm.
As the realm’s Dao Lord, bolstered by its fortune, if he couldn’t easily dispatch the Fallen Saint, he’d be a pitiful excuse for a Dao Lord.
His fight with Wuliang in the Six Paths Nirvana Land was a weak reference—Wuliang’s strength had plummeted, and he’d been comprehending the Six Paths.
“Keep going,” Lan Xiaobu said, his tone steady, eyeing Zhu Ku.
“Yes,” Zhu Ku replied, not daring to hide anything. “I believe a true Great Dao has clear rules and direction—like my Zhu family’s Soul-Forging Dao, or the Causality, Fate, and Reincarnation Daos I’ve heard of. There’s even talk of a Mortal Dao.”
Lan Xiaobu thought of his Longevity Dao, singularly pursuit of eternal life, refined as his cultivation grew. To say it lacked clear rules or direction? He disagreed. Its direction was longevity, though it indeed lacked flair in combat. His victories stemmed more from his Dao divine abilities.
As Zhu Ku spoke, he pondered how to shatter his memories during a soul-search.
After half an incense stick’s time, Lan Xiaobu exhaled, blasting a spatial Dao charm vortex into the void.
He then tore a remnant soul from Zhu Ku, who screamed as his soul ripped apart.
Lan Xiaobu tossed the soul into the vortex. Zhu Ku watched in horror as his billions of soul fragments across countless realms were shredded, their anguished cries echoing from the vortex endlessly.
“Dao Lord Lan, spare me…” Zhu Ku pleaded, truly terrified. This was total annihilation—no reincarnation, no remnant soul rebirth.
But that wasn’t what scared him most. His world had been pried open.
Infinite despair and darkness surged, his regret enough to drown the Great Desolate Divine Realm.
