“Yao...Yaoyao?!”

Zhou Yuan hugged Yaoyao’s body, feeling the coldness that spread from it. His complexion instantly turned deathly white, and his voice began to quiver as panic filled his eyes.

“Master Cang Yuan!”

Cang Yuan’s figure had already flashed over before his voice could fade. Yaoyao’s body slowly floated into the air, her fair skin filled with cracks.

These cracks covered her entire body, making Yaoyao appear akin to a fractured porcelain doll. It was a sight that would make anyone ache deeply inside.

With a grave expression, Cang Yuan sighed and said, “It still ended up like this.”

Zhou Yuan hurriedly asked, “What happened to her?”

Cang Yuan frowned as he explained, “She undid the seal, releasing a tremendous amount of power that her body was unable to bear. Her body is now on the verge of shattering, and the power within her has sealed her conscience away, putting her into a deep sleep in order to preserve her life.

“This is a big problem.

“If it were anyone else, there would naturally be numerous ways to reconstruct the body if it’s destroyed, but if Yaoyao loses this body, she would have no chance to reconstruct it.

“Moreover, Yaoyao’s injuries are far too grave. Even putting herself into a deep sleep can only delay the inevitable destruction of her body. Once the body reaches its limit, it will still shatter to pieces.”

Zhou Yuan’s expression involuntarily changed. He never imagined that the problem would be so serious for Yaoyao.

Swish!

A streak of light shot over and landed on Yaoyao’s body. It was Tuntun.

It could likewise sense Yaoyao’s condition, and it released a mournful bark in response. Soon after, he looked towards Zhou Yuan and suddenly spat out a jade scroll.

Zhou Yuan took the scroll and scanned it with his Spirit. He discovered that it contained several methods to evolve Silver Shadow, causing him to be stunned. This was likely left behind by Yaoyao.

Zhou Yuan tightly gripped the jade scroll as feelings of self-blame surged in his heart.

Yaoyao had done far too much for him, while he had ultimately failed to protect her. In fact, she had even been forced to undo the seal for him in the end.

He knew that with Yaoyao’s strength, it would have been extremely easy to escape if she was no match for their enemies. But because of his existence, Yaoyao had zero intentions of fleeing alone.

At this moment, Zhou Yuan truly hated how weak he was.

If not for his lack of strength, there would have been no reason for Yaoyao to act!

He had been so proud of his cultivation over the years and had even felt somewhat pleased after ultimately defeating Wu Huang and King Wu. In a single day, he now realized how laughable he had been.

Before the truly strong, he was nothing but an ant that anyone could trample.

“Master Cang Yuan, please, I beg you, save Yaoyao.” Zhou Yuan’s hoarse voice trembled. He was akin to a drowning man desperately grasping at anything he could.

Cang Yuan looked at Zhou Yuan. The latter was very dazed and lost.

Although this was only the second time Cang Yuan had met Zhou Yuan, he understood this young man’s character. Even being incapable of finding his eight meridian channels so many years ago had not put him into such a state. From this, one could see how huge of a blow Yaoyao’s injuries were to him.

However, even Cang Yuan found Yaoyao’s situation extremely problematic.

There were many methods to repair the body in this world, but most of them were ineffective on Yaoyao. She was too extraordinary and naturally could not be assessed through ordinary methods.

“Don’t worry, I will naturally do everything I can to help Yaoyao recover.” Cang Yuan fell silent for a moment before he waved his sleeve. A crystal coffin giving off an extremely cold aura appeared before him.

Yaoyao’s body slowly floated through the air and gently landed in the crystal coffin under Zhou Yuan’s unfocused gaze.

Tuntun jumped onto the crystal coffin, its sharp claws continuously scratching at its clear coffin walls. Chips of ice flew as Tuntun released an anxious and mournful sound.

Cang Yuan sighed but did not try to stop it. Tuntun and Yaoyao had lived together for many years, and there was a very strong bond between them. As such, this scene was naturally very difficult for Tuntun to accept.

Cang Yuan allowed Tuntun to vent its feelings for the time being as he raised his head and looked towards the far away world boundary. The crack was still present, and an icy, giant golden eye could be seen within it. The sacred race experts had evidently sensed his presence.

“Zhou Yuan, I’ll be leaving Cangxuan Heaven with Yaoyao. Otherwise, the ultimate experts of the sacred race will surely try everything they can to descend into this heaven.”

Cang Yuan looked at Zhou Yuan in silence for a moment before he continued, “It will also be extremely dangerous for you to stay here, so come with me. Besides, I’ll probably need your help with Yaoyao.”

Zhou Yuan immediately nodded without hesitation.

He was not worried about his own safety, but if it was to help Yaoyao recover, he would reject any request that was made of him.

Zhou Yuan took a deep breath, suppressing the sorrow in his heart as he forced a smile and said, “Master Cang Yuan, I’ll go settle my affairs first.”

Cang Yuan nodded.

Zhou Yuan turned around and moved towards sect master Qing Yang and the others.

Upon seeing his approach, complicated expressions emerged in the eyes of sect master Qing Yang, the Hongya Peak master, old man Bai Mei and peak master Ling Jun. After all, Zhou Yuan had played an extremely important role in today’s earth-shaking battle.

Let alone how patriarch Cang Xuan had used his body, Yaoyao and the mysterious elder in black seemed to have special relationships with Zhou Yuan.

To think that Zhou Yuan was merely a Divine Dwelling stage practitioner.

Normally speaking, someone with such strength had no place in a heaven-shocking battle like this that affected the entire Cangxuan Heaven. And yet, Zhou Yuan had indeed participated and had even played an unignorable role.

Hence, they could no longer view him as an ordinary disciple.

“Zhou Yuan, if not for you, today’s battle would have been a disaster for our Cangxuan Sect.” Sect master Qing Yang sighed deeply.

“Sect master thinks too highly of me.” Zhou Yuan smiled bitterly. “Sect master, I will be leaving Cangxuan Heaven for some time, I hope that the Cangxuan Sect can take care of my father and mother.”

He had ruined Sheng Yuan’s plans, creating an irreconcilable grudge between himself and the Sacred Palace. He was unafraid of them. His only worry was that the Sacred Palace would take revenge on his parents.

The Great Zhou Empire was after all far too tiny in the face of the enormous entity that was the Sacred Palace.

Sect master Qing Yang solemnly replied, “Don’t worry, you’re still a disciple of the Cangxuan Sect, and if not for your act of scattering the Cangxuan Saint Stamp, Sheng Yuan would have likely obtained it. You’ve done the Cangxuan Sect a huge favor.

“After you leave, I will dispatch an expert to guard the Great Zhou Empire, and I will personally take action if a situation arises. As long as the Cangxuan Sect stands, no one will be able to hurt your parents.”

Zhou Yuan’s expression relaxed a little. Sect master Qing Yang had given him a very serious promise. With sect master Qing Yang’s protection, anyone would have to think thrice before attempting to do anything to his parents.

As for the Sacred Palace, even if Sheng Yuan hated Zhou Yuan to the core, he was currently gravely injured and would most likely be focused on searching for the Cangxuan Saint Stamp fragments when he recovered.

For the next few years, a storm of blood would surely engulf Cangxuan Heaven due to these Saint Stamp shards. Even the six overlord sects would be drawn in, and no one would be able to stop it.

However, it was precisely this chaos that would make it very difficult for the Sacred Palace to focus on dealing with the Cangxuan Sect. As long as the Cangxuan Sect was stable, there would naturally be no one who dared to touch his parents.

He did not know when he would return this time.

However, he believed that when he returned to Cangxuan Heaven, he would no longer be as weak as he was today. When that time came, he would properly settle all his grudges.

Endless frost churned in Zhou Yuan’s eyes as he looked towards the direction Sheng Yuan had escaped in.

Sheng Yuan and the sacred race were the biggest culprits behind Yaoyao’s injuries. Though he currently did not possess the qualifications to settle these debts, when he gained enough strength in the future, he would make sure to repay them in full.

Zhou Yuan bowed deeply towards sect master Qing Yang.

“Thank you sect master!

“I’ll be leaving my parents in your hands!”

As his voice rang out, he looked towards Old Xuan and solemnly bowed to him. He then turned around without any hesitation and returned to Cang Yuan’s side.

The various experts that were still present were currently focused on them.

Cang Yuan ignored these gazes as he waved his sleeve. The space before him slowly tore open, creating a dark spatial passage that could lead to anywhere.

“Let’s go.”

Cang Yuan lifted the crystal coffin and stepped into the spatial passage.

Zhou Yuan followed. He turned around for one final glance at Cangxuan Heaven before quickly turning back and entering the spatial passage.

The spatial passage swirled as it devoured their figures.

As they watched Cang Yuan leave, the many experts breathed a sigh of relief.

Cang Yuan was far too powerful and was akin to a giant dragon. If he chose to stay, it would change the entire landscape of Cangxuan Heaven.

Sect master Qing Yang stared at the spot where Zhou Yuan had disappeared. A long time later, he slowly said, “I have a feeling that none of us will be able to look down on him when he returns to Cangxuan Heaven.

“Hehe, I’m very curious to find out how far he will have grown when he returns…”

After speaking, he shifted his gaze to the land devastated by the earlier battle. He released a long, drawn-out breath.

The astonishing battle that decided the future of Cangxuan Heaven was finally over.

However, sect master Qing Yang knew that it was not over. Due to the scattered fragments of the Cangxuan Saint Stamp, Cangxuan Heaven would likely welcome an unprecedented period of chaos.

This was not bad news for the Cangxuan Sect and the other overlord sects. At the very least, Sheng Yuan’s ambitions had been stopped for the time being.

Before this, no one would have ever imagined that this great chaotic battle would start and end at the hands of a young Divine Dwelling stage practitioner.

News of today’s battle would most definitely spread, and Zhou Yuan’s name would soon become known by everyone in Cangxuan Heaven.

End of Book 1: Cangxuan Heaven