The Stars Beyond

Chapter 340: Ashen Scriptures And Burning Civilization

Wang Xuan’s cultivation benefited greatly from such ways of overlapping spacetime and unconventional reunion. Traversing through time and space within the bonfire, wandering through the fading mythical world, silently communicating and comprehending all helped in his cultivation.

Once, twice......

Ten times, twenty times......

He watched scenes of joy and sorrow, the lives of others in past worlds. He worried for them, sighed for them and silently bid them farewell.

They were all unparalleled and remarkable beings, but unfortunately, they fell in the past.

Before the vast universe, in the era of exhaustion. No matter how strong an individual was, they were merely fleeting lights illuminating a patch of the starry sky, dissipating in an instant.

In the endless darkness of the universe, they were too insignificant. In the end, those brilliant individuals were all brought back to dust. There were no exceptions, everyone aged and died, endless regrets were left behind.

Wang Xuan remained silent. The flame flickered, illuminating his face. It also cast a blurred path ahead of him. He was pondering about the useless techniques that had been abandoned and deemed worthless in time.

"The useless techniques mislead people, time was wasted on it. It’s better to burn them all!" echoed the elderly voice. In the rough and aged hands, the last stack of scriptures was thrown into the fire. Following that, the hands fell into the bonfire and burned together.

It was the epitome of utmost disappointment. They were unwilling to discuss any further, unwilling to struggle anymore. They simply burned everything to ashes, and allowed it to sink into oblivion completely.

"Wuwu......" A crying sound echoed .

Wang Xuan heard the cries. Among the scriptures falling into the bonfire, someone was seated atop, crying out in pain. It was a formidable figure that he encountered in the overlapping timelines before. The figure was capable of piercing through the heavens with a single hand. Yet, they were reduced to such a state.

Why?

He remained with the last few individuals. Personally burning all the records of this transcendent civilization!

Ultimately, there was too much reluctance. These were their life’s work, yet they had to sacrifice them like this. Personally igniting them, burying them away.

A silver-haired man cried and then laughed.. After coughing up blood, he lowered his head and gazed at the blood stained papers. He let out a low roar, then exploded, engulfed by the flames.

"We've burned enough. Transcendence will be in eternal silence, and we can't hold on any longer. Even if there are successors, they'll merely be like a meteor that appears by chance. Farewell." said another person before he dissipated.

"Don't forget, the results of our effort are yet to be released. With all the scriptures as fuel and a mythical civilization as the flame, we can forge a treasure ship. We don't know if it can cross over, get us closer to the truth..."

Underneath the bonfire, a lone boat emerged, leaping amidst the flames. It was nurtured by countless scriptures, embodying the accumulation of a mythical civilization.

Inside, the true blood of various races carried their hopes. Breaking free from the bonfire, tearing through spacetime, they departed.

"Go, and don't look back if you succeed. Your reappearance will mean failure. These are our final efforts. I wonder if they'll all be in vain, squandering the peaceful years."

It was a kind of hope that carried their aspirations. The treasure ship disappeared into the boundless darkness at the end of the universe.

Wang Xuan was shaken to the core.

Was that... the Roaming Ark?

He did not know it had such an origin!

"I advise those who come later, don't squander the good times. Don’t struggle in nothingness, it's meaningless. Live peacefully in the ordinary world," said the mythical powerhouse in despair, urging people to stay away from the void of transcendence, never to set foot in such realms again.

The fire dimmed and was about to go out. Only one old man was left amidst the embers, his hands burnt away. Finally, he turned back, looking towards the approaching Wang Xuan and the little White Tiger.

"Die! You Evil Spirit." His eyes emitted a final glint of vitality, then he disintegrated. His body and spirit were both obliterated. However, the light in his eyes flew out, intent on strangling Wang Xuan and the round-faced girl.

This time, Wang Xuan felt something amiss. Across spacetime, he felt danger, like he was being hunted.

The old man's gaze was like the last flicker of the mythical civilization's flame. It was terrifying.

Without hesitation, Wang Xuan waved the Godslaying Banner. He fled at an extreme speed with the little White Tiger.

Boom!

The surface of the banner was charred and was ignited at one of the corners. The situation left Wang Xuan in shock. It had never happened before. The banner was burning?

Even near the crater of the approaching reality, where the banner was hit by a burst of red light, it only showed singed marks. Here, across countless eras, people from different spacetimes had somehow damaged the Godslaying Banner.

The attack was being blocked by the Godslaying Banner, while Wang Xuan and the round-faced girl backed away. Despite their efforts, they were still blasted into light rays above the remnants of the grand path.

This time, Wang Xuan felt like he had waited for a long time. The darkness was suffocating, he was unable to gather his consciousness, almost believing he was about to die.

Finally, his scattered consciousness gradually cleared up. His spirit condensed in the lingering firelight and reappeared.

The round-faced girl’s mind also started to clear up. Her spiritual body that was composed of light rays immediately let out a startled roar. She was thoroughly frightened.

"The Demon Lord and I have experienced these kinds of bonfires before, but why is it different this time? Who is this old man? He's terrifying, he almost killed me!" she exclaimed with a quivering voice. With a swift movement, she darted back to her physical body. Thoroughly shaken, she felt that she had truly died just now, obliterated by someone's gaze in the chaotic spacetime.

Wang Xuan's spiritual form stood in front of the bonfire. He was lost in thought for a long time. If it weren't for the Godslaying Banner, he felt that both of them would have truly been obliterated! This was somewhat terrifying. Clearly not in the same dimension, yet across intersecting spacetime, that last guardian was unexpectedly powerful. He hurriedly inspected the Godslaying Banner. The burning corner had extinguished. It was damaged, but with the golden patterns interwoven, it slowly restored itself.

"Good!" he exclaimed, gripping the small flag tightly.

Wang Xuan calmed down. The fact that the old man also referred to him as an Evil Spirit was astonishing.

Could it be that the Evil Spirit truly needed to be redefined?

If that were the case, then the astronauts that he and Old Zhang saw in the bar could be understood. It made sense now. They were scattered spacetime creatures that observed this mythical world. However, the appearance of those seemingly ancient astronauts he discovered in Sun's city was somewhat inexplicable.

He felt a headache when he thought of the Evil Spirit in the desolate lands. In the vast expanse there were densely packed crimson eyes, ranging from the size of lanterns to mountain peaks.

How many monsters were there?

If they were also a result of distorted spacetime, how many people were observing him? Were they all addicted voyeurs? Everyone of them simply had...... voyeuristic tendencies. He shook his head. It was definitely not like this. The forms of Evil Spirit were very complex. It was not defined by a single situation.

For someone like him that was distorted in spacetime, while observing a mythical civilization, to be regarded as an Evil Spirit was indeed worthy of deep thought and vigilance.

"Next time, I’ll need to catch a few to study about it!"

The bonfire was about to be extinguished. It was indeed emitting traces of real energy substances, albeit not in large quantities. However, Wang Xuan felt that it was valuable. Finding such superior substances in the real world was of great significance!

Soon, Wang Xuan discovered that the so-called real energy substances originating from the real world were somewhat inaccurate. It seemed to be the remnants of the mythical divine scriptures that were burnt and scattered. As the bonfire gradually extinguished. Wang Xuan's physical body, as well as his spirit, were slowly becoming stronger. This was a unique form of cultivation.

He was on the verge of a breakthrough. If he continued to accumulate like this, he could advance his realm without entering the Solitary Void and still improve in the present world.

He was extremely close to the seventh stage! With a flash, the bonfire extinguished. This signaled the end of a mythical civilization. However, the surroundings—the square, buildings, ancient streets, and more—remained intact. At this moment, the Godslaying Banner completely restored itself, as if nothing happened to it. It was truly miraculous. Wang Xuan stood up, holding the flag as he sifted through the ashes, in hope of finding something.

Among the remnants of other great avenues, there was a golden bamboo slip.

"I'll help you!" said the little White Tiger, eagerly rushing over with a swoosh. Her chubby round face was full of fake smiles as she quickly extended her claws.

As a result, she scowled in pain and retreated. There were still embers beneath the ashes, and even her mighty flesh couldn't withstand it. It almost got roasted.

Don’t overthink it, this kind of bonfire was very special!

Fortunately, she didn't really probe into the residual embers below; otherwise, Wang Xuan pondered, she would have ended up as a round-faced white tiger missing a limb. Underneath the extinguished bonfire, something was actually left behind!

Wang Xuan's eyes instantly brightened up. As the firelight faded, there was still a supreme divine item, perhaps the divine scripture? A faint white light flickered. It was a page of scripture, pulled out by him using the Godslaying Banner. Only this one page remained, leaving him both excited and somewhat regretful.

How come there's only one page left? It should have been an entire volume.

Soon, the white light dissipated, leaving behind only a plain piece of paper. It was dull and yellow, with densely packed symbols covering both sides. Wang Xuan looked again and again. This was truly an ordinary piece of paper, with a very common material. It was a miracle that it could survive. If its material had been extraordinary enough, the entire scripture should have been preserved.

It was truly regrettable.

Who left behind this scripture?

Only one page remained in the end. The text on it was likely not simple.

Was the bonfire sentient, unwilling to completely burn it away?

Wang Xuan looked again. He didn't recognize a single character. He asked Little White Tiger, "Do you have any knowledge of ancient writing?"

"Ah, hahaha...... You don't recognize them?" The round-faced girl suddenly perked up, proudly raising her chin and continued, "Ask me! I'm extremely proficient in ancient civilizations and Taoist studies. No origin is unknown to us. We've meticulously studied the scripts of various eras!"

Seeing her so proud and arrogant, Wang Xuan pressed down on her head, rubbing it vigorously. "Don’t talk so much and start translating it!"

"Owwww... Stay away from me!" Little White Tiger bared her teeth and claws. If it weren't for her being afraid of getting hung on the forest of buildings, she might have exploded in anger and fought him to the death. But for now, she could only bear the humiliation, pushing his hand away disdainfully.

"What kind of crappy writing is this? Looks like gibberish! Why can’t I recognize any of them?" She said furiously while repeatedly looking at it, only to stare blankly. She was unable to translate it.

Wang Xuan snatched it back, unwilling to speak to her anymore. He tried to communicate with it spiritually, in hopes of triggering a resonance.

Unfortunately, the paper showed no response.

He gritted his teeth and threw the paper into the residual embers below until it emitted a faint white light again. Wang Xuan immediately protected himself with the Godslaying banner and established a spiritual connection with it. This time, the connec

tion was successful. They resonated with each other!

"What is reality and what is illusion. I often wonder, the only thing that is real is myself......"