Chapter 1843: A Gentle Smile Through the Long Years

"Finally here, huh..." Sun Bumen looked at the speeding domain train and the red shadow with fluttering theatrical robes on it, the corners of his mouth curling up slightly.

He looked back at Duke Star and Duke Su and spoke lightly:

"Hey."

"No time to keep wasting with you two, our Red King has come to take the Red Dust Lord home..."

"You two, get out of the way."

Duke Star and Duke Su naturally couldn't just step aside obediently. Two Demigod domains overlapped, mechanisms and zither music echoing continuously, like two great mountains blocking the courtyard.

Sun Bumen snorted coldly, cracking his finger bones in front of his chest, seven-colored flames burning fiercely, as if he had made up his mind to clear a path for Chen Ling before he arrived.

The phantom of the Awakening Lion roared angrily behind him, and in the next second, his figure shot out like a meteorite!

Almost simultaneously,

A sword flashing with cold light whistled from another direction!

The killing intent of the Soldier Divine Path Demigod was like a sharp blade cutting through cloth, forcibly slashing a gap in the two overlapping Demigod domains. A sword beam instantly pierced the battlefield and flashed before Duke Su, whose pupils contracted sharply!

Thud—!!!

The Awakening Lion transformed by Sun Bumen kicked the mechanism in front of Duke Star into pieces;

The ancient zither let out a harsh wail, Duke Su's red clothes danced in the wind, and drops of blood seeped from a cut on her cheek, falling onto the ancient zither that had been slashed at the corner...

Duke Star and Duke Su felt the two surging auras ahead, their pupils contracting slightly.

Seven-colored flames obscured the heavens, and thick dust rolled back across the battlefield;

An actor wearing a Tang suit and small round sunglasses, and a general clad in tattered armor with black ribbons fluttering, walked out side-by-side from the thick dust.

"I thought you would have left after ascending to Demigod." Sun Bumen glanced at his side and spoke leisurely.

"Killing Wang Jian is my personal grudge, it doesn't count as a favor." Bai Qi responded expressionlessly. "Besides, you had already beaten him to the point of severe injury; I just picked up the bargain."

"Heh, at least you have some conscience... it would be even better if you could die right now and let Spade be resurrected."

"Thanks, but I have no plans to die yet."

Sun Bumen clicked his tongue.

Under the terrifying Demigod auras of the Theater Divine Path and the Soldier Divine Path, the dust in the air was forcibly pressed into the earth, and faint roars sounded in the void!

From the perspective of Duke Star and Duke Su, it was as if a massive Awakening Lion stepping on the Theater Divine Path and an armored figure using the Soldier Divine Path as a sword were slowly crushing their forms into the earth... That terrifying, suffocating pressure that transcended them was something they hadn't experienced in too long.

Thud—!!

The two figures stepped forward simultaneously.

Under the terrifying pressure, seven-colored flames and ancient killing intent pierced directly between Duke Star and Duke Su, forcibly pushing their forms to the sides!

It was as if, by aura alone, they were going to carve a path between them.

The mottled earth was torn apart bit by bit before the extreme auras of the Theater Path and the Soldier Path. A chasm-like crack in the earth was forcibly torn between the two Dukes, and under the push of the two auras, this crack continued to expand...

"They..."

"What exactly do they want to do?!"

Mechanisms around Duke Star operated at high speed, resisting the aura of the Awakening Lion opposite, but under the seven-colored flames, his mechanisms were clearly affected, operating obscurely and sluggishly.

Duke Star and Duke Su were constantly pushed and retreated to the sides on the cracking earth...

The abyss was like a red carpet laid out by the earth, mysterious and dangerous.

At the same time,

At the end of the abyss where dust was flying.

A train that had lost its tracks finally stopped slowly on the muddy earth amidst a low roar, dense mud splashes flying in the air.

As the train came to a complete stop, a figure draped in theatrical robes stepped on the void and walked slowly from the flying dust.

Cinnabar-like earrings swayed lightly in the wind, and the spotless theatrical robes were like a mysterious and vibrant ceremonial dress, making one unable to help but fix their gaze... The person stepped on the abyss red carpet like an actor calmly taking the stage, walking slowly from between Sun Bumen and Bai Qi, whose auras were roaring.

The peak of the Theater Path chuckled and pushed up his sunglasses;

The peak of the Soldier Path held the hilt of his sword expressionlessly.

The world-ending figure in red walked slowly forward under the protection of the two peaks, his calm brow hiding a pair of scarlet eyes looking down upon the world.

"...Thank you."

Chen Ling spoke lightly.

Bai Qi glanced at him without speaking.

Together with Sun Bumen, who was already poised for action beside him, he transformed into two afterimages capable of crushing the heavens and earth, charging straight toward Duke Star and Duke Su, who were divided on either side of the abyss!

Boom—!!!

The battle between Demigods began once again.

The surging aftermath of the battle blew the theatrical robes above the abyss into a frenzy, but his figure remained as steady as a rock from beginning to end.

He walked through the battlefield step by step, as if no one else was there, arriving before the courtyard gate, and placed his hands slowly on the door... then, pushed with force.

Creak—

Accompanied by the dull sound of the door opening, Chen Ling stepped inside.

The scattered embroidered threads surrounding the courtyard retreated rapidly, even making way for him specifically.

This courtyard had been waiting for him for nine years.

"Cough, cough, cough, cough..."

Yao Qing's weak coughing sounded from the corner of the courtyard. "Director Chen... she is about to wake up."

Chen Ling walked step by step to the sleeping white-clad figure surrounded by numerous embroidered threads...

Nine years had passed, and time had not left a single trace on Su Zhiwei's face; she was still rosy-cheeked and sleeping soundly, only now her eyelashes were fluttering slightly, as if she were about to wake up.

Chen Ling nodded and waited quietly before her.

Outside the courtyard, the Demigod battle was destroying the heavens and earth; inside the courtyard, two figures were quietly waiting for a woman to wake up.

A moment later,

The steady breathing paused slightly.

The fluttering eyelashes suddenly froze, and after a brief pause, they slowly opened...

Su Zhiwei was awake.

More than three hundred years of time were but a dream; at this moment, she was still a bit hazy, staring blankly at the blue sky painted by Floating Life above her head, unable to recover her senses for a long time.

Blue sky, white clouds, courtyard, embroidered threads... everything was so peaceful, as if these three hundred years of time had been this quiet.

Finally, Su Zhiwei regained some consciousness. She turned her head slowly and saw a familiar figure draped in theatrical robes come into view.

Su Zhiwei's body trembled slightly.

"Direc... tor Chen...?"

She asked uncertainly and cautiously.

Chen Ling looked at her and smiled slightly... He was silent for a long time before finally saying the promise that spanned two eras and was hundreds of years late:

"Meeting in the Red Dust..."

These five words roared like thunder in Su Zhiwei's mind. She stared blankly at Chen Ling, countless thoughts surging like a tide... In this instant, she understood everything.

A faint smile curled the corners of her cold eyes. She opened her mouth and responded softly:

"...A gentle smile through the long years."