Chương 278: Rebirth - I Became the Grandpa (Part 2)

The stench of decay, writhing maggots, buzzing flies, and foul corpse fluids filled the air. Dongfang Yunxing had lain hidden for an entire month. He was the second young master of the Dongfang. Once, his life had been blessed with happiness, comfort, and harmonious kinship. All of that had been destroyed in a single day one month ago. His parents were slaughtered, his elder brother died miserably, and his childhood sweetheart perished before his eyes. Of the entire Dongfang, only he remained.

Overwhelming hatred had kept him alive through the nightmare. The once elegant and graceful second young master of the Dongfang now looked like a skeletal ghoul freshly crawled from hell, emaciated and covered in filth. On his chest hung a plain-looking pearl. As Dongfang Yunxing's hatred surged, the pearl trembled faintly. Sensing the movement, he lowered his head and stared at the pearl. He had survived only because of it.

As long as it received a steady supply of energy, the pearl could conceal his aura completely. His elder brother had given it to him, urging him to live on. Thanks to the pearl, he had managed to survive right under that terrifying powerhouse's nose. Suddenly, the pearl in Dongfang Yunxing's hand began to glow with intense heat. In the next instant, boundless radiance shot out from between his fingers in all directions....

"How many autumns has this great dream lasted… What year is it now?" Su Chen did not know how much time had passed. When he opened his eyes, he realized this was not the Reverse Fate Space. His current life had not truly ended yet. That was good news. His million Reverse Fate Points had not been wasted. But there was bad news as well. His condition was terrible… weaker than ever before. He had fused completely with the pearl and become its artifact spirit.

The pearl was called the Heaven's Mandate Pearl, a supreme treasure that had fallen into his hands by chance. In this life, Su Chen's identity was Jiang Chen, a supreme prodigy of the Eternal Emperor Sect. He had become an Emperor in less than a thousand years, and his path afterward had been smooth sailing. The Eternal Emperor Sect held enormous influence even within the Land of Immortality, guarded by Rulers above the twentieth tribulation who watched eras rise and fall.

Everything changed when Jiang Chen entered an ancient ruin and obtained the Heaven's Mandate Pearl. The pearl was rumored to have been refined by a true immortal and contained opportunities for immortality. Naturally, Jiang Chen wanted to claim it for himself. He studied it thoroughly but discovered nothing useful. Somehow, news of the pearl leaked, and the Eternal Emperor Sect was destroyed. If he had not awakened his memories at the critical moment, this life might have ended before it truly began.

The tale has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.

"Hmm?" Su Chen suddenly sensed something faint. The Heaven's Mandate Pearl… seemed to have recognized a master. Su Chen: "..." This was troublesome.... Dongfang Yunxing noticed the pearl in his hand glowing brightly. A deep, ancient voice echoed from within, as if traveling across endless ages. It sounded vast and filled with vicissitudes. This was no illusion. The pearl broke free from his grasp and floated into the air.

Then wisps of green smoke rose from it, gathering in midair into the figure of a white-haired middle-aged man. Though he released no shocking phenomena, the man's profound aura instinctively compelled Dongfang Yunxing to kneel.

"G-ghost… It's a ghost…" Dongfang Yunxing jumped in fright at the sudden appearance of Su Chen. Su Chen looked at the skeletal, blood-stained youth before him. This guy looked more like a ghost than he did.

"His Talent… is extremely poor. His cultivation…" Never mind. Su Chen gazed at the youth who looked no different from a dried corpse. He had already drained him dry. The sea of corpses around them made it easy for Su Chen to guess what had happened here. However, he had no interest in the details. What puzzled him was how this ordinary-looking boy had managed to make the Heaven's Mandate Pearl recognize him as its master.

Before awakening his memories, Su Chen had studied the pearl for countless millennia without eliciting even the slightest reaction.

"Could this be destiny?" Su Chen felt speechless. Yet for now, his fate was tied to Dongfang Yunxing's. They would rise or fall together. At least for the time being.

"You… you're not a ghost?" The youth spoke with uncertainty. He quickly realized the truth. A ghost could not possibly possess such a grand, imposing aura or the bearing of a supreme expert.

"Please accept me as your disciple, Senior!" Dongfang Yunxing dropped to his knees with a thud and kowtowed repeatedly, smashing his forehead against the ground until blood stained the dirt. Although Dongfang Yunxing's talent was abysmal, that was not an issue in Su Chen's eyes.

"Very well," Su Chen said with a sigh. Dongfang Yunxing's talent and comprehension were both poor, but he had obtained the Heaven's Mandate Pearl and become its host. Perhaps the future held some turning point.

"Since you are so sincere, this Emperor shall accept you as my disciple." Emperor! Dongfang Yunxing did not yet understand the weight of that title, but his eyes burned with deep-seated hatred. He was not a fool. The mysterious middle-aged man before him was either a ghost or an unrivaled powerhouse. Dongfang Yunxing wanted revenge. He was willing to pay any price. Suddenly, Su Chen felt a wave of weakness. The Heaven's Mandate Pearl's current power was too feeble to let him remain outside for long.

He slowly extended a finger and tapped it between Dongfang Yunxing's brows.

"This is the Nirvana Art. It can improve your talent. The pearl's remaining energy is nearly exhausted. Your master will now enter slumber. If you can gather the energy this pearl requires, we will meet again as master and disciple." Su Chen's figure slowly faded away. Dongfang Yunxing felt as if everything had been a dream. Only when the Heaven's Mandate Pearl lost all its energy and fell to the ground with a crisp clink did he snap back to reality.

A profound, mysterious cultivation method now resided in his mind, far surpassing anything the Dongfang had ever possessed. Dongfang Yunxing carefully picked up the Heaven's Mandate Pearl. This was his hope for revenge. However, he soon realized a serious problem. His master had not told him how to obtain the energy the pearl needed. That was not even the worst part. The most critical issue was that Chen Xuan had seized all of Dongfang's resources. Dongfang Yunxing had nothing left to cultivate the Nirvana Art.

He looked around at the devastation, his eyes filled with bone-deep hatred. He chose...