Outside Of Time
chapter-1581

Editor: Atlas Studios

The vast God Blood River surged with turbulent waves.

The river was wide, stretching endlessly, as if it connected with the horizon, its immense presence inspiring awe.

It was unimaginable how many gods had been slain to gather such a vast amount of divine blood, creating this terrifyingly immense blood river.

Especially under the aurora in the sky, the crimson waters glimmered with dim light, like countless drops of blood dancing on the surface.

They seemed to be vying with the aurora for brilliance

This scene formed a magnificent and grand painting.

This painting was heavy with history, embodying the passage of time, bearing witness to the tales of gods and immortals, and marking the transformation of the Fifth Star Ring’s landscape.

Its significance was profound.

At this moment, within this blood-red painting, the solitary boat cut through the waves, advancing forward.

The voice of the ferryman also echoed between heaven and earth.

Every word and every sentence was like the sound of the Dao, rumbling like thunder in Xu Qing’s mind.

“The sole Venerable Immortal.”

“Fifth Human Ancestor.”

All these words rapidly gathered in Xu Qing’s mind until they transformed into the figure of an old man.

That old man was the old man sitting cross-legged in the Fifth Star Ring that Xu Qing had seen on the map in the Demon Feather Holy Land. He was also the one he had seen in the outer sea of Wanggu.

“Senior, why is Venerable Immortal… known as the Fifth Human Ancestor?”

A long time later, Xu Qing took a deep breath and asked.

The ferryman picked up his pipe and took a puff. He then exhaled the smoke and calmly spoke.

“The upper thirty-six star rings belong to the higher realm. Each of them has a different number of lower star rings, which is the lower realm.”

“Some lower star rings have names, and some don’t.”

At this point, the ferryman glanced at Xu Qing. This glance seemed to have a deeper meaning.

“The lower realm of the Fifth Star Ring doesn’t have a name. A long time ago, when the gods of the upper realm were roaming the Fifth Star Ring, its lower star ring was known as the fifth lower realm.”

“Within it, countless races existed, enslaved by the gods, with each race needing to worship the gods to survive.”

“Then came wars, rebellions, suppression, and eventual resurgence—worlds crumbled as battles were fought against the gods.”

“Each time, they were defeated. After every defeat, the Fifth Realm was wiped clean, and everything began anew, continuing as food for the gods.”

As the ferryman’s voice rose and fell, his words seemed to have become the runes of time, interweaving into a river of time that flowed into Xu Qing’s understanding.

“Until the final time, when the Human Emperor of the Fifth Realm led a brilliant uprising, unmatched in its splendor, bringing the war between immortals and gods, the lower and the upper, to its peak.”

“During the war, as the Human Emperor of the Fifth Realm ascended to the Venerable Immortal Realm, the original Venerable God of the Fifth Star Ring encountered an unexpected event, leading to the ultimate overthrow of the Fifth Star Ring and altering the balance of power.”

“For this reason, he became known as the Fifth Human Ancestor.”

After the ferryman finished speaking, he raised his head and looked at the sky with a hint of emotion.

Xu Qing listened silently, reflecting on how history often bore striking similarities.

The Fifth Star Ring resembled Wanggu to a certain extent.

However, it was obvious that the development here was much more smooth.

“Then, about the other upper star rings…” Xu Qing instinctively asked.

“Most of them failed. There was only one place that could have succeeded. However, due to some accidents, it also failed.”

The ferryman’s voice was filled with reminiscence as he shook his head.

“That’s because the thirty-six upper star rings don’t belong to cultivators or immortals. This place… is the domain of gods.”

“God and Immortal. On these two paths, Immortal… has a limit and is one step behind the gods.”

The ferryman’s tone was a little low.

“To be precise, immortals have no future after reaching the Venerable Immortal realm. For countless years, the Venerable Immortal in the Fifth Star Ring has reached a standstill.”

“As for gods… above the Venerable God, there are Divine Gods!”

“Divine God isn’t a legend. It truly exists.”

“There has only been one such existence since ancient times, and this being is known as the First Divine God. It is said that Their emergence was what created the upper and lower realms.”

“The tale of this creation is hard to verify. The history is too ancient, with no concrete evidence to confirm it.”

The ferryman’s words gave Xu Qing a shock that was even more dramatic than his previous words.

“That First Divine God…” Xu Qing’s breathing was hurried. Before he could finish speaking, the ferryman already knew what he wanted to ask.

“They went to an unknown land and never returned.”

“After that, countless eras passed and no second Divine God appeared in the thirty-six upper star rings until Desolate in the ninth star ring.

“After the First Divine God, It had the greatest hope of becoming a Divine God. What’s worth rejoicing about is that It failed in the end.”

“Otherwise…”

The ferryman didn’t mention the consequences but Xu Qing could already imagine it.

If Desolate had succeeded, the divine might of the entire thirty-six upper star rings would soar by countless times. Immortals… would have no possibility of survival from then on.

Xu Qing quietly digested the words of the ferryman.

In the span of a day, the ferryman had spoken of many things—from the core and divisions of the Ruler Realm to the ability of the Quasi Immortal, and even the entire worldview. It seemed as though nothing was held back, as everything was revealed to him.

This had clearly exceeded the range of the ferryman’s job.

There was no need for the other party to tell him these things.

Recalling back to when he was being chased and the other party’s actions…

Given all this information, it would be unrealistic for Xu Qing not to have any thoughts. In his mind, numerous thoughts had already begun to form.

He suspected that this ferryman… might have an old connection with Wanggu.

As for whether he came from Wanggu or was familiar with some cultivators from Wanggu, Xu Qing couldn’t figure it out. However, he noticed that the other party’s gaze had swept past his sword many times.

Hence, after a while, Xu Qing suddenly spoke.

“Senior, do you know Wanggu…”

The ferryman narrowed his eyes but didn’t speak.

Xu Qing waited for a long time and sighed inwardly.

Although the other party didn’t respond, this lack of response actually represented some answers.

“Senior, there’s a drastic change in Wanggu…”

The ferryman still didn’t speak. He smoked his pipe and exhaled smoke.

Xu Qing fell silent.

He didn’t choose to ask further.

Just like that, time flowed by and the sixth day… gradually arrived.

The cost of crossing the river was six days of the traveler’s life. This was because the time to cross the river was fixed at six days.

At that moment, as the sixth day continued to pass, Xu Qing finally saw the end of the vast God Blood River in his sight.

That was the Western Starfield of the Fifth Star Ring.

As they approached the end, the river’s waters calmed, with the waves gradually subsiding. Only the boat continued its steady journey. A few hours later, as the sixth day was about to come to an end…

They finally reached the western shore.

The soil here was different from the southern marshes; there were no swamps in sight, and the land was a reddish hue, as if imbued with fiery energy.

“Get off. If you need to cross the river again, the cost won’t be just six days of life, but a full sixty years.”

The ferryman calmly spoke.

Xu Qing took a deep breath. After he stood up and bowed, he stepped out of the lone boat without saying anything.

Stepping on the land in the west, Xu Qing turned and looked at the boat.

The ferryman was smoking the pipe. The smoke he exhaled made his figure even more hazy.

Recalling these six days, Xu Qing lowered his head and bowed again.

“Thank you, Senior.”

Although the other party didn’t respond to his questions during the last few days and didn’t speak again, the things he told him previously were very meaningful.

It was equivalent to opening up Xu Qing’s understanding of the world.

Hence, according to Xu Qing’s way of doing things, this was a great kindness.

Hence, his bow was incomparably sincere.

After bowing, Xu Qing turned and quickly left into the distance.

It was only when his figure disappeared from the shore that the ferryman slowly raised his head and looked in the direction Xu Qing had left in.

“Sword Holder, has that stubborn fellow died…”

He mumbled, his tone filled with reminiscence.

After a while, he sighed softly.

“Wanggu… It’s been a long time since I heard this name. The myriad of races in Wanggu have probably long forgotten my name… It has been erased from history.”

As he mumbled, the ferryman raised his right hand and looked at his palm.

At that moment, runes that looked like human faces flickered in his palm, emitting a bizarre aura.

If Xu Qing was here, he would definitely be able to recognize it at a glance…

Those runes that shone like human faces were… immortal arts!

At the same time, in the air of the Western Starfield, Xu Qing, who had already left the shore, heard the sigh of relief of the clay fox.

“The person before… was a bit frightening. I felt like he had the thought of grabbing me and cruelly tormenting me the moment he saw you.”

“Xu Qing, the place you came to isn’t fun at all!”

The clay fox’s heart skipped a beat, especially when She recalled the God Blood River.

“Forget it, I’d better continue sleeping…”

The clay fox mumbled and quickly retracted Her aura again.

Seeing Star Flame acting like this, Xu Qing couldn’t say anything. He had already reminded the other party that the place he was going to might not welcome gods.

However, it was obvious that Star Flame didn’t believe him at that time.

“It might get even more dangerous …”

Xu Qing hesitated but ultimately reminded Her again.

In an instant, the aura of the clay fox was restrained to a greater extent.

She rarely did this in Wanggu. One could imagine how intimidating that ferryman was to Star Flame.

As Xu Qing pondered, the figure of the ferryman couldn’t help but appear in his mind.

“Who exactly is he…”

Xu Qing mumbled.

He had no answer to this.

A long time later, Xu Qing drew in a deep breath. After burying this matter in his mind, the map and information of the Western Starfield appeared in his mind.

Compared to the other three Starfields, the Western Starfield was weaker overall. Its orthodox Dao Immortal Sect was also in decline.

The fundamental reason was the Sky Patroller of the West, who maintained a transcendent and detached mindset, showing little concern for the development of the sect or the opinions of the outside world.

Most of the cultivators in the sect also didn’t seem to care.

Because of this, the clans here had more influence than in the other three Starfields. They fought with each other and devoured each other, expanding and developing.

Looking at this information, Xu Qing thought of the star of the West.

He was the weakest among the eight stars, and was a disciple of the Dao Immortal Sect’s Sky Patroller.

“Li Mengtu…”

“His clan had a special characteristic. All direct descendants had the word ‘tu’ in their names.”

“His cultivation level is at the early-stage Ruler realm and has four authorities. With his combat strength, together with a set of bizarre spells inherited from his clan and his master, he has the battle record of killing a mid-stage Ruler.”

As he pondered, Xu Qing stared at the world of the West.

“This place is much more peaceful than the South, making it suitable for healing, but not for challenges or self-improvement.”

“However, for me now, the most important thing is to find a place to recuperate as soon as possible.”

“As for what to do later… I’ll act according to the situation.”

Determination appeared in Xu Qing’s eyes as he moved forward rapidly..