Outside Of Time

Chapter 1619: Aurora Era
Editor: Atlas Studios

In the first year of the Immortal Calendar, the Fifth Star Ring’s Venerable God fell, and the Venerable Immortal rose to prominence.

Following this, twelve Immortal Lords established twelve eras. Each era spanned 12,000 years, forming one grand cycle.

Within each era, there were four stages: Dao Beginning, Dao Radiance, Dao Heaven, and Dao End.

Each stage lasted 3,000 years, with the four stages forming a smaller cycle within the grand one.

A rule was set: for every new Immortal Lord that appeared in the future, an additional era would be added to the Immortal Calendar.

Due to the Venerable Immortal’s prolonged cultivation, it was also decreed that the ruling Immortal Lord of any given era would preside over the Fifth Star Ring for the duration of that era.

Today, it was the year 2999 of Dao End within the Nine Shores Era, in the eleventh month.

Only one more month remained before the arrival of the next era, the Aurora Era.

The transition of eras held immense significance for the cultivators of the Fifth Star Ring.

Both the Immortal Lord of the next era and the current one acknowledged its importance.

Therefore, within the Aurora Immortal Palace—the designated ruling seat of the upcoming era—lanterns and decorations abound, creating an atmosphere filled with the joy of bidding farewell to the old and welcoming the new.

Everything was prepared and the handover was almost complete.

Years prior, most of the immortals under the Aurora Immortal Lord had already spread throughout the Fifth Star Ring, gradually assuming critical positions in preparation for the transfer of power.

Particularly, the four disciples of the Aurora Immortal Lord had taken on essential roles. Aside from the fourth disciple, who remained stationed at the Immortal Palace, the other three had been sent out to take over leadership of the three Great Immortal Armies from under the command of the Nine Shores Immortal Lord.

This was something that would happen every change of an era.

Now, everything was set; all that remained was for the final month to pass.

The entire Fifth Star Ring was about to usher in a new era.

The Aurora Immortal Lord would take control of the Star Ring for the next 12,000 years.

However, amidst the anticipation and excitement filling the entire Aurora Immortal Palace, a piercing wail echoed from the Thunder Punishment Cliff in the east of the Immortal Palace.

The agonizing cries spread far and wide, catching the attention of many within the palace.

Yet, most of the Immortal Palace cultivators chose to ignore it. Even when some glanced in the direction of the cliff, they merely sighed and shook their heads before returning to their business.

At most, some would make a few teasing remarks when they noticed a hurried youth flying toward the Thunder Punishment Cliff.

“Is the Young Lord being punished again?”

“What did he do this time?”

“Zhong Chi, no need to rush. Come, tell us what happened this time.”

Faced with everyone’s questions on the way, the youth named Zhong Chi smiled bitterly and greeted them one by one. However, his figure didn’t stop as he headed straight for the Thunder Punishment Cliff.

As he got closer, thunder rumbled intensely and the screams and wails grew louder and louder.

Finally, just as the youth was about to step into the restriction of the Thunder Punishment Cliff, the tragic cry suddenly stopped.

The youth was stunned. He quickly took a few steps forward and stepped into the restriction. As his vision blurred, when everything became clear in the next instant, what greeted his eyes was blue lightning that filled the sky.

Endless lightning flashed in the sky and continuously blasted at a figure hanging in the air.

That figure was wrapped in lightning, his clothes tattered and his hair disheveled.

Now, for some reason, he no longer wailed. However, under the endless bombardment of lightning, one could see that his body continued to tremble and his breathing was hurried. There were many wounds all over his body and he was dripping with blood.

Blood from the corners of his mouth as well.

Seeing that the young lord was still breathing, Zhong Chi revealed a relieved expression and bowed to the air.

“Young Lord… the Hundred Flowers Palace has been sealed as per your orders. No one will be able to enter while you’re undergoing the thunder punishment.”

The thunder continued and the lightning continued.

The figure hanging in the air didn’t seem to hear Zhong Chi. At that moment, he closed his eyes.

No matter how fiercely the lightning struck, he kept his eyes shut.

Within his closed eyes, a whirlwind of emotions swirled—confusion, helplessness, and a sense of disorientation.

“Why am I being punished as soon as I appeared?”

The intense pain of being whipped caused Xu Qing’s heart to sink.

He clearly remembered that a few breaths ago, he had walked into the gate of the Northern Sea in the third realm. As he chanted those words of the identity, he appeared here the next instant.

This body wasn’t his.

In fact, even the soul wasn’t his.

Only the consciousness belonged to him!

It was as though he had transmigrated. At the next instant… the memories of the host became countless pieces of information that rumbled in his consciousness.

A long time later, everything about the host appeared in Xu Qing’s perception.

This time around, the little person didn’t deceive him.

The host’s identity was indeed the only son of the Aurora Immortal Lord.

This was the fourth realm.

It was a fragment of the past.

Just as Xu Qing was digesting the memories of the host, the lightning that was continuously whipping him suddenly paused.

The lightning wasn’t the only thing that stopped. The sky and even space and time also stopped.

His study companion, Zhong Chi, was also motionless.

A figure emerged from nothingness in the sky, appearing before the suspended Xu Qing.

The figure was blurry, difficult to discern, but the overwhelming sense of its presence was undeniable—like the embodiment of heavenly will, the world itself, or the master of this star ring, capable of suppressing everything.

He coldly looked at Xu Qing.

After a while, he slowly spoke.

“Unfilial son!”

“I’ve tolerated your debauchery on most days, even turning a blind eye to you creating the Hundred Flowers Palace, allowing you some level of indulgence.”

“However, you… dared to provoke the daughter of the Nine Shores Immortal Lord!”

“You deceived her heart, and even her body!”

“Even that, I could have overlooked, thinking you had some skills. But you abandoned her without a second thought, with such cruelty and finality!”

“Now, the Nine Shores Immortal Lord is here, with his daughter in tow, demanding I give an explanation!”

Xu Qing remained silent. He was nervous and extremely vigilant.

He knew that the person in front of him was none other than Aurora Immortal Lord.

He was worried that he would be seen through, even though this method of returning to the past was guided by the Immortal Palace and was in line with the rules.

However, the Immortal Lord was the Immortal Lord after all!

In addition, he wasn’t sure if the little person was the same as him and had a host here.

If it had a host, then the Aurora Immortal Lord was naturally the most suitable choice.

That little person was originally the remnant will of Aurora .

However, Xu Qing couldn’t be sure.

In addition, he was currently digesting the host’s memories, so he could only remain silent in the face of the Aurora Immortal Lord’s angry rebuke.

“Now you know how to remain silent?”

The Aurora Immortal Lord’s voice was cold. With a swift wave of his hand, he intensified the power of the lightning, causing the previously suspended lightning in midair to instantly double in size.

After doing this, he turned and took a step away from the Thunder Punishment Cliff.

A lingering sound rang out.

“If you remain silent, then continue your silent repentance. I’ve already arranged the marriage for you—whether you like it or not, you’ll wed the daughter of the Nine Shores Immortal Lord!”

“As for that disgraceful Hundred Flowers Palace of yours, I’ll give you half a month to disband it!”

“Zhong Chi, although you’re just a study companion, this time, you are responsible for keeping an eye on him!”

His voice echoed and landed on the world, causing the still lightning to instantly resume. It then rumbled toward Xu Qing with an even sharper aura.

The surroundings also resumed their operations at this instant, including the youth, Zhong Chi.

He took a deep breath and respectfully raised his head. He was also nervous.

He had never seen Aurora Immortal Lord.

This was because every time Aurora Immortal Lord appeared, the surroundings would fall still.

This time around, his senses had recovered because Aurora Immortal Lord mentioned him.

Although he had been in this fourth realm for some time and had verified his identity, he knew that the people in this past timeline would not be aware of his presence.

However, facing the Immortal Lord, he was still instinctively nervous.

As for this young lord…

It was often said that a tiger’s father would not raise a dog of a son, but in Zhong Chi’s memory, this was not the case with this father and son pair.

The young lord clearly possessed excellent cultivation talent, yet he was a slave to his desires, achieving nothing. According to the history he knew, this young lord would die in a month.

On the day of his wedding to the daughter of the Nine Shores Immortal Lord, before the ceremony could even be completed, the entire Aurora Immortal Palace would plunge into catastrophe.

“A month from now, it won’t just be him who dies, but the entire Immortal Palace; no one will survive, all will be erased by the Venerable Immortal…”

“So, I just need to play my role well and complete my Dao here!”

“Furthermore, the identities of the others are deeply hidden. I can only roughly identify them for now… but as long as they don’t obstruct me, I have no need to look for them.”

At the thought of this, Zhong Chi looked up at the young lord who was hanging in the air and sighed.

“Young Lord, the Immortal Lord has made up his mind this time. Why don’t… you just comply?”

The voice that fell into Xu Qing’s ears felt as if it had traveled through the ages, somewhat blurred.

At this moment, he was gradually absorbing the host’s memories completely, and the life of this son of Aurora left Xu Qing unsure how to evaluate it.

It couldn’t be said that he didn’t take cultivation seriously, nor could it be said that he was entirely hedonistic.

At over three hundred years old, he had reached the Ruler realm, not far from becoming a Quasi Immortal.

In his daily actions, he generally presented himself as gentle and elegant, possessing a certain charm, and he had an attractive appearance.

Yet there was one notable flaw…

That was amorousness.

If described according to this young lord’s self-deprecating thoughts from the memories, it was as if his heart had shattered into countless fragments, with each fragment falling for a different person.

Thus, his memories essentially resembled erotic paintings.

Xu Qing frowned. After digesting his memories, Zhong Chi’s voice became clearer. Hence, he opened his eyes and looked at the youth below.

In the host’s memory, he only had one study companion.

In that case, Xu Qing had roughly guessed the true identity of this youth. There was a high chance that it was Li Mengtu.

However, he naturally wouldn’t reveal it.

Hence, with just a glance, Xu Qing spoke hoarsely.

“I’m a little tired.”

Zhong Chi blinked. He felt that the young lord seemed a little different from the past, but there was one thing he was sure of.

In this period of history, there were three people whose roles couldn’t be played.

One was the Venerable Immortal, one was the Immortal Lord, and the other was the young lord.

There was no need to say anything about the Venerable Immortal and the Immortal Lord.

As for the young lord, he was protected by the Immortal Lord.

The reason for this certainty was related to the process through which they obtained their identities in the third realm. Therefore, this understanding was not only his own, but also a shared recognition among the other stars.

‘It should have something to do with this thunder punishment and the reprimand from the Immortal Lord just now.’

With this thought, Zhong Chi spoke in a low voice.

“Young Lord, when I came, I asked the Thunder Pavilion. They said that the thunder punishment will last for seven days.”

“In seven days, it will be the day of your battle with that heaven’s chosen Li. Do you want me to inform the other party to postpone it?”

Upon hearing this, Xu Qing recalled from the host’s memories that the host had previously had a conflict with a prodigy from the Heaven’s Net Sect named Li Shaofeng. The cause of their disagreement was a peerless beauty, who was the incarnation of a thousand-year-old enchanting fox.

That fox beauty belonged to heaven’s chosen Li.

Hence, both sides secretly arranged a battle. The beauty would belong to whoever won.

“What kind of battle is this…”

Xu Qing frowned.

Just as he was about to speak, he suddenly fell into deep thought and thought of the clay fox.

‘Don’t tell me She arrived as well?’