Rank Six Immortal Gu, Spring Autumn Cicada!
Its body was no larger than a palm, yet its beauty was breathtaking. A pair of delicate cicada wings shimmered with brilliant yellow-green light, carrying both the vitality of spring and the loneliness of autumn, as though countless years had settled upon that tiny body.
Enveloped by the boundless will of Heaven, it emerged upstream through the River of Time like a dragon soaring against the endless current. Wherever it passed, the raging river nearly froze. Behind it, an almost imperceptible speck of light struggled to keep up, never falling too far behind.
Soon, Spring Autumn Cicada reached the place it was meant to arrive. The boundless will of Heaven disappeared, and the Immortal Gu slowly landed on the surface of the River of Time. The tiny speck of light had long since reached its limit. Barely holding on, it finally caught up and fell beside Spring Autumn Cicada.
Buzz! Buzz! Buzz!
__________
Southern Border
Spring rain quietly fell over Qing Mao Mountain.
It was already late at night. A gentle breeze drifted through the rain, carrying a trace of spring's chill. Yet Qing Mao Mountain was far from dark. From the mountainside to the foot of the mountain, countless lights stretched through the night like a bright ribbon.
They came from the stilted bamboo buildings scattered across the mountain. Built in the traditional southern style, thousands of lanterns illuminated the mountain beneath the curtain of rain.
On one of these bamboo buildings stood an ordinary-looking youth. His wide sleeves swayed gently in the breeze as he quietly looked at the lights sparkling across the mountain, his clear eyes filled with complex emotions. "Gu Yue Village... Could this really be five hundred years ago? The Spring Autumn Cicada I just refined actually worked..." Fang Yuan stood beside the window, his gaze deep as he allowed the wind and rain to blow against him.
Spring Autumn Cicada ranked seventh among the Ten Great Mystical Gu, so naturally, its ability was extraordinary. Its effect was not complicated. It could travel against the River of Time, carrying the Gu Master's will back into the past. In simple terms, it allowed rebirth.
"I never expected that I would actually succeed in using Spring Autumn Cicada and return five hundred years into the past!" Fang Yuan raised his hand and stared intently at his young, pale palm before slowly clenching his fist, feeling the reality of everything before him. The soft pattering of rain against the window entered his ears. He slowly closed his eyes, and only after a long while did he open them again and sigh.
"Five hundred years of life... it truly feels like a dream."
His thoughts drifted toward his previous life as memories buried deep within his mind surfaced one after another, becoming clearer than ever.
"Tomorrow is the Aperture Awakening Ceremony... the day I opened my aperture at fifteen."
I have remembered everything vividly. Ever since childhood, he had been known as a genius. He excelled in poetry and painting, and everyone in the clan believed he was destined for greatness. Yet when his aperture awakened, fate played a cruel joke on him. He possessed only C-grade aptitude, while his younger brother, who had always lived in his shadow, awakened A-grade aptitude instead. The hopes placed upon him for fifteen years crumbled in a single night, leaving him with nothing but disappointment.
None of that matters anymore. In this life, only one thing matters... Eternal life!
_____
At the same time, in Sandwell Oasis, Western Desert
With a thought, Lin Yan opened his aperture, revealing the Flame Sovereign Blessed Land. At that moment, his soul suddenly trembled. A faint will descend from the sky, as though he had traveled across the endless River of Time. Without the slightest resistance, it merged with his own will.
Lin Yan stood motionless. Memories that did not belong to this moment quietly surfaced, and the doubts he had carried for so many years instantly disappeared.
A faint smile appeared on his face. "Just as I expected."
Even before Fang Yuan rebirth, Lin Yan had already suspected this. From the moment he transmigrated into this world, he had possessed knowledge of the original timeline. There was no way his future self would leave such an important turning point without making preparations.
Lin Yan immediately began reviewing everything he had gained. He first sorted through the memories left behind by his future self.
Back then, he had also waited quietly in Sandwell Oasis, waiting for Fang Yuan Rebirth. Yet nothing happened. After gathering information through Treasure Yellow Heaven and even traveling to the Southern Border to investigate personally, he finally confirmed that he was in the first timeline.
From that moment on, he completely changed his plans. Instead of relocating the Huang Family, he returned to Blazing Yellow Heaven Pit. There, he devoted himself to cultivation while steadily developing the Flame Sovereign Blessed Land, all the while silently observing the changes unfolding across the Five Regions.
To avoid being swept into the altered timeline, he even deliberately distanced himself from allies such as Sun Cu and Tang Fangming.
This continued for five hundred years.
During those five hundred years, he has witnessed the chaos that engulfed the Five Regions. He even caught a glimpse of Spectral Soul Demon Venerable's battle at Heavenly Court. The terrifying demonic might that erupted from that battlefield seemed capable of swallowing the entire Gu World.