OUTSIDE OF TIME

Chapter 1297: Northern Age and Green Wood

Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios

At the same time, on the star where the Imperial Tomb was located in the Divine Realm, as the human-faced trees wailed and the statues outside the Imperial Tomb Mountain revived, as the vortex in the sky spun, the endless storm became even more terrifying.

It was as though doomsday or heavenly punishment had descended. The entire star was trembling.

The howling and whimpering sounds wreaked havoc in the world.

“Damn it, which bastard triggered the divine restrictions here!!”

In the storm, in a leather tent, a person sat cross-legged.

The skin of the tent this person was in was very strange. It was unknown what beast it was from but it could actually stand firm amidst the storm.

When the wind blew over, it was actually frozen in this small space.

However, it couldn’t calm Fan Shishuang’s heart. In the tent, he gritted his teeth and looked outside with intense fear in his eyes.

His goal in coming to the Divine Realm was on one hand to perfect his cultivation and on the other hand, to hunt the creatures of the Divine Realm. The core of the plan was the imperial tomb on this star.

For this, his family had prepared for a long time. Hence, after he entered the Divine Realm, he didn’t stop and headed straight here.

However, he didn’t expect that after he arrived, this star would erupt as though it had revived.

As for the method he had set up to enter the imperial tomb, it was still a little incomplete.

“lean only risk it!”

Fan Shishuang gritted his teeth and lowered his head to perform a series of hand seals with both hands. He then continued to use the secret art his family had prepared for him.

In reality, he wasn’t the only one. On this star, there were two other people doing a similar thing. They were also cursing the person who had triggered the divine restrictions.

Tian Mozi and Tuoshi Shan.

The former had arrived earlier, while the latter had paid a huge price to shake off the jellyfish before rushing over.

Coupled with Flame Mystic, it could be seen that the top four heaven’s chosen of the Flame Moon Mystic Heaven Race were all here.

Moreover, the method of entry that each of them used was different. Clearly, the forces behind them had prepared for many years.

However, because of the sudden change in this star, the entry became even more difficult. The price they had to pay was also greater, and it was the same for the dangers they experienced.

At that moment, Xu Qing, who was being cursed by the three of them, stepped into the seventh vortex, following the longing from his second divine repository.

The moment he entered, it was as though he had passed through a membrane and arrived in a void.

It was an endless void, pitch-black, cold, and unfamiliar.

All perception seemed to have been stripped away in this darkness. There was no direction, no path, and no sky and earth.

Even his consciousness seemed to have slowed down. Everything he saw and sensed was darkness.

The rules and laws were different from the outside world.

It seemed like slumber and sluggishness were the principles here; everyone who entered had to abide by the will of this place.

Xu Qing was no exception.

In this darkness, his divine sense slowly lost its fluctuations, his thoughts gradually drifting into slumber. Only the longing emanating from the second divine repository within him grew particularly intense in this absolute silent void.

It was like a lump of fire that burned increasingly intensely, guiding Xu Qing’s perception.

Following this perception, Xu Qing instinctively moved forward. In this dark void, he was like a fish swimming.

It was unknown how much time had passed. It might have been a century or even a breath of time. The instant the longing from the second divine repository was extremely intense, the fish rushed out of the sea and leaped out of the surface.

It stepped through the void and arrived under a resplendent starry sky.

When the starry sky reflected in Xu Qing’s eyes, all of his lost perception returned. His divine sense that was no longer fluctuating rose again and his sleeping thoughts instantly woke up.

Next, he saw two indescribably vast existences far away in the starry sky.

It was a huge tree that seemed to represent life and origin, as well as a majestic behemoth that seemed to represent terror and evil!

The tree was so large that it occupied half of the starry sky. Its thick, tough branches that were filled with mysterious runes spread out in all directions. Every pattern on it seemed to contain laws and the Great Dao.

At the same time, one could see Dao Fruits growing on the tree. Every one of them was the size of a star. Or rather, they were stars.

From afar, the treetops extended endlessly, seeming to symbolize dominance, while their roots delved deep into the void, as if supporting the universe.

However, it was not lush but mostly withered; not only the branches, but also the stars on them appeared shriveled, as if life itself was ebbing away.

Yet, even in their withered state, each branch emanated an indescribable and formidable aura, shaking the starry sky and affecting the universe.

As for that behemoth, it was equally astonishing. Though not as large as the starry tree, it was still half its size. Its body resembled that of a bull, shrouded in poisonous mist, and amidst the haze, one could see that each of its hairs was tied to a corpse, draped over its body like armor made of corpses, a ghastly sight to behold.

Its head was white, contrasting against the starry backdrop, eerie and demonic.

Its single eye occupied half of its face and its vertical pupil emitted endless evil. It also had a serpent tail, coiling like a python around the stars, emitting roars that shattered and obliterated the stars.

At this moment, this colossal beast was locked in battle with the starry tree, each fighting for survival, their respective auras reaching the pinnacle, every move threatening to collapse this expanse of stars, bringing annihilation and doomsday in its wake.

Xu Qing looked at this scene from afar and was shaken.

Regardless of whether it was the starry tree or the terrifying behemoth, they were like gods in his eyes. He couldn’t resist them or move them.

He didn’t know why they were fighting but the longing from the second divine repository clearly told Xu Qing that that terrifying behemoth… was the source of the longing!

The instant Xu Qing’s gaze landed on the battle in the starry sky, the serpent tail of the terrifying behemoth swayed and its snake eyes stared fixedly at Xu Qing. After that, it swung and tore through the starry sky, breaking through the void and coming over.

It opened its mouth, wanting to devour Xu Qing and the surrounding starry sky.

Xu Qing’s eyes narrowed and he immediately retreated. At the same time, the starry tree swayed and a huge leaf suddenly appeared in front of Xu Qing first.

This leaf was like a continent. Most of it had withered and only 20% of it exuded vitality. At that moment, it curved like a boat as it floated over and flashed past Xu Qing.

At the next instant, a mighty force descended. Xu Qing felt his vision blur and the roar in his ears gradually faded until it disappeared. When everything in front of him became clear… the starry sky wasn’t there, the tree wasn’t there, and the behemoth wasn’t there either.

What appeared in Xu Qing’s eyes was a world.

This world was gray, the ground was gray, the sky was gray, and all he could see was thin fog. There was no sign of life, only ruins in the distance that were hazy in the fog.

Xu Qing’s heart froze. His gaze swept across the surroundings as his mind raced.

He recalled the scenes since he stepped into the seventh vortex. Regardless of whether it was the silent and cold void, the starry sky where the tree and the behemoth fought for their lives, or the world in front of him now, they all made him feel that it was unreal.

Only the longing from the second divine repository in his body seemed to be the only real existence.

“That behemoth is the source of the fluctuations in the Poison Restriction divine repository… As for the leaf…”

Xu Qing narrowed his eyes.

He didn’t know if this world was within the leaf or the next stop of this vortex journey.

A long time later, Xu Qing retracted his thoughts. He then lifted his head and looked at the gray sky before sensing the fog in the surroundings.

That fog was poison.

Xu Qing’s body swayed and he flew into the distance. Several days later, in this world that was enveloped by poison fog and amidst the ruins, Xu Qing’s figure stood on a tall slanted pagoda.

“This is a withered world with no life. There’s a high chance that it’s that leaf that floated over…”

“What caused the world to wither was the poison here.”

“In the past, this world might have been prosperous, but now… it has become ruined.”

Xu Qing lowered his head and his gaze penetrated the fog here, looking at the ruins in the surroundings. He could see the damaged roads, the skeletal remains of buildings, the collapsed ancient temples, and the broken statues.

Looking at the entire scene, he could vaguely sense the prosperity of this world countless years ago.

But now, everything had turned to ruins.

Xu Qing fell silent. After a long time, he retracted his gaze and looked at the dozens of huge stone tablets that had collapsed in front of the slanting pagoda.

He lifted his right hand and waved it. Immediately, these stone tablets floated and arranged themselves together, forming a ten-thousand-foot-long stone tablet.

Although it was barely pieced together, there was still a remnant light that slowly appeared. From afar, the world enveloped by the poison fog seemed to have a hint of the light of civilization.

As the remnant light circulated, the runes on the stone tablet gradually appeared.

These runes smelled unpleasant but if one’s divine consciousness enveloped them, they would gain knowledge.

It recorded the history of this world.

This world was called the Northern Age Sky. It was one of the nine skies under the command of the Immortal Emperor. The Immortal Emperor personally conferred Green Wood the Dao of the Northern Age to protect this world and protect all living beings.

However, after the Immortal Emperor’s early demise, the invasion of foreign gods caused the nine skies to collapse.

After that, evil spirits tainted this world and poisoned the energy of this world, causing a great plague. They spread throughout the Northern Age and weakened the Heavenly Dao, wanting to devour it.

Most of the inhabitants of this world died from the plague and pestilence.

During this time, there were also resistance efforts, with three attempts to alter fate, all ending in failure.

In the final attempt, the ruler of this world gathered all his strength and finally split open the sky.

However, from the crack in the sky, a beast walked out. It had the body of a white-headed bull and the tail of a snake. The world withered and the sky collapsed.

On the slanted pagoda, Xu Qing sensed the runic marks and understood the origin of this world, as well as the reason for its withering and destruction. As for the immortal emperor inside, he was probably the ancestral emperor buried in the imperial mausoleum.

“Northern Age, Green Wood…”

Xu Qing thought of the starry tree.

As for the description of the evil beast, it was exactly the same as what he had seen in the starry sky previously.

After pondering for a while, Xu Qing waited for a while but didn’t see any other changes. Hence, he was about to dissipate his divine sense.

However, at this moment, a low and aged voice rang out from the sky, the ground, the ruins, the inscriptions, and all the substances in this world, landing in Xu Qing’s mind.

“That malevolent entity is called Ming FeiO.”

“It’s formed by the seven negative emotions of all the dead living beings when the Immortal World collapsed and the outer gods invaded.”

“Little friend from the outside world, you are the first cultivator to come here after the Immortal Emperor died…”

“Please, help me.”

Xu Qing’s expression was as usual and he wasn’t surprised at all. He lifted his head and looked at the sky as he spoke in a low voice.

“Who are you?”

“The Immortal Emperor bestowed the name Green Wood to me to protect the

Northern Age. I am the Heavenly Dao of this world.”

An aged voice echoed in all directions.