Chapter 753: The End of the Age of the Gods

The Heaven Punishing Ancestral Sword is the origin of the primordial era, a divine sword conceived from the earliest and most core power of the chaotic world. It is also the first sword in the chaotic world, the ancestor of all swords and even all weapons in the world. It ranks first among the Seven Profound Heavenly Treasures, possessing power so immense it can defy order. Legend has it that even a person with no power can easily cleave the firmament and destroy all heavens if they hold it.

Jasmine calmly described this mythical sword. Even in the world where she was born, the Heaven Punishing Ancestral Sword was a legendary existence.

"During the Era of Gods," she continued, "the Heaven Punishing Ancestral Sword was known to all. However, after its first and only recorded owner, Mo E, the chief of the Three Creation Gods, expended all his divine power and passed away peacefully, the Heaven Punishing Ancestral Sword vanished without a trace, never to be seen again. It was not until 700,000 years later that the sword's shadow reappeared in the heart of chaos."

Yun Che remained silent.

Jasmine closed her eyes, seemingly lost in distant memories, and continued to recount slowly: "Because it was located in the center of chaos, the Heaven Punishing Ancestral Sword was discovered by both the God Race and the Devil Race. Naturally, both desired to possess it. Acquiring the Heaven Punishing Ancestral Sword would grant supreme power throughout the chaotic space, a temptation even the gods could not resist."

"Thus, a fierce war erupted between the God Realm in Southern Chaos and the Devil Realm in Northern Chaos over the ownership of the Heaven Punishing Ancestral Sword. Initially, both sides fought simply to seize the sword. However, as the conflict intensified, numerous gods perished at the hands of devils, and many devils met their end at the hands of gods. Hatred began to fester, spread, and escalate, making the war between gods and devils even more brutal. The increasingly brutal warfare led to more and more gods and devils perishing, deepening the animosity. The two worlds, originally independent and the only two races at the divine level in existence, became undying enemies. The battles grew fiercer year by year, endlessly."

Yun Che listened intently, but inwardly, he had roared the same question countless times: What the hell does any of this have to do with Fen Juechen!?

"After 30,000 years of fierce warfare between the two races, the Devil Race began to crumble. Even their Northern Chaos realm was progressively seized by the God Race. The remaining devils were gradually driven by the gods to a corner of chaos..."

"In desperation, the Devil Race launched a desperate counterattack, regardless of the consequences. They unleashed a forbidden artifact that even they themselves greatly feared..."

"The Evil Infant's Annihilation Wheel!"

As she spoke that name, a fleeting tremor appeared in Jasmine's delicate brows. It seemed that in her memory, this was an existence of extreme terror, capable of making even true gods tremble.

"The Evil Infant's Annihilation Wheel?" Yun Che was slightly startled, then recalled: "The Evil Infant's Annihilation Wheel, which ranks second among the Seven Profound Heavenly Treasures, second only to the Heaven Punishing Ancestral Sword?"

"Precisely," Jasmine said, closing her eyes again. "Although it ranks second among the Seven Profound Heavenly Treasures, beneath the Heaven Punishing Ancestral Sword, its terror far surpasses that sword. In terms of destructive power alone, it might even exceed the Heaven Punishing Ancestral Sword."

"The Heaven Punishing Ancestral Sword was born from the purest and holiest power at the heart of chaos, a supreme and sacred sword. The Evil Infant's Annihilation Wheel, however, is the complete opposite extreme. It was born from the most Yin and evil forces within the chaotic space, containing the most extreme and terrifying negative power. Once its power is unleashed, even deities cannot control it, much less wield it. Therefore, although the Evil Infant's Annihilation Wheel had always been in Northern Chaos, the Devil Race had always desperately sealed and isolated it, never daring to even approach it, let alone use its power. Even when retreating step by step in their battles with the God Race, they never considered using the Evil Infant's Annihilation Wheel's power."

"However, even after the Devil Race's defeat and the gradual occupation of Northern Chaos, the God Race continued to press forward, intending to exterminate the devils entirely. In their sorrow and despair, the Devil Race, nearly driven insane, unleashed the Evil Infant's Annihilation Wheel."

Jasmine's brows involuntarily furrowed, and even her voice held a trace of pain, as if the scene in her memory was truly too horrific: "When the Evil Infant's Annihilation Wheel's power was unleashed, a sound like an infant's cry, yet terrifyingly sinister, echoed through every corner of chaos. The aura and shadow of death enveloped every space..."

"Had the God Race been at its peak, they might have been able to collectively resist the Evil Infant's Annihilation Wheel. However, despite their victory, the 30,000 years of brutal warfare had exacted an extremely heavy toll. The once flourishing God Race was terribly diminished and utterly incapable of resisting the Annihilation Wheel's destructive power. The gods were either annihilated, severely wounded, or had their divine energy rapidly drained as evil energy permeated their bodies, leaving them in a state worse than death."

"Yet, it wasn't only the God Race who suffered this calamity; the Devil Race, who had unleashed the Evil Infant's Annihilation Wheel, also endured it. The tragedy of that disaster surpassed anything you could imagine by countless magnitudes. Those annihilated like mere blades of grass were not lowly beings, but true gods, supreme existences who, if alive today, could rule all heavens. The remaining gods and devils, clinging to hope for survival, were forced to unite against the Evil Infant's Annihilation Wheel's power, but it was already too late. Both races were pushed to the brink of extinction. Just as the Evil Infant's Annihilation Wheel's power finally reached its limit, and both races thought they saw a glimmer of hope, the Wheel, in its final act, released a sky-full of virulent poison, casting both the God and Devil Races into the ultimate abyss of despair."

"Poison?" Yun Che murmured instinctively.

"That poison is called 'Myriad Tribulations of Annihilation.' Although you possess some knowledge of toxicology, you will have certainly never heard of this poison," Jasmine stated indifferently. "It is far more terrifying than the 'Heavenly Wounding Soul Severing Poison' that the Sky Poison Pearl can release! So terrifying that even true gods would die upon contact!"

Yun Che's heart jolted with shock, followed by a wave of confusion. Heavenly Wounding Soul Severing Poison? What was that? Why didn't he know about it? When he had used the Sky Poison Pearl's poison, though formidable, it wasn't so terrifying as to be beyond comprehension. After releasing all its poison, it had only contaminated thirty-three cities and seventy-six sects. Could it be that the Sky Poison Pearl's poison power was severely incomplete when he obtained it?

Jasmine glanced at Yun Che's reaction but interpreted it differently. She turned her head and said, "You needn't be surprised. Although the Sky Poison Pearl is named 'Sky Poison,' its primary ability is not poison; its main abilities are purification and refinement... and they are the most powerful purification and refinement powers in existence!"

"However, it's uncertain whether even the Sky Poison Pearl's purification ability can purify the Evil Infant's Annihilation Wheel's 'Myriad Tribulations of Annihilation.' The 'God Slaying Absolute Misery Poison' that afflicted me, and the devilish poison that Hong'er suffered, were both refined by ancient devils using the overflow of evil energy from the Evil Infant's Annihilation Wheel. If merely its overflowing aura can create such terrifying god-slaying poison, then how horrifying must 'Myriad Tribulations of Annihilation,' born from the Evil Infant's Annihilation Wheel's core power, be? Even true gods might not comprehend it. At least in my view, 'Myriad Tribulations of Annihilation' cannot be purified even by the Sky Poison Pearl. Otherwise, the God Race would not have been completely annihilated."

"...And what happened then? Were the God Race and Devil Race simply destroyed like that?" Yun Che pressed.

"Precisely," Jasmine nodded indifferently. "The collapse of the Era of Gods began with the Heaven Punishing Ancestral Sword, ranking first among the Profound Heavenly Treasures, and ended with the Evil Infant's Annihilation Wheel, ranking second."

"When I bestowed upon you the Evil God's Undying Blood back then, I told you that the Evil God was the last deity to perish in the Era of Gods. At that time, with gods and devils annihilated, chaos reigned supreme. Countless planets, star realms, and living beings perished. The aura of the Evil Infant's Annihilation Wheel finally dissipated. Although the Evil God had not died, he was afflicted with 'Myriad Tribulations of Annihilation,' destined to meet his end. In his final moments, he used his remaining divine power to calm the turmoil in the chaotic order as much as possible. Then, with his last divine energy, he traveled to the place he chose for his demise... where he ultimately perished."

"This part about the Evil God constitutes memory fragments I extracted after acquiring the Evil God's Undying Blood. They were likely intentionally left by the Evil God when he left his legacy. However, these memory fragments contain many blanks, indicating that the Evil God deliberately concealed certain information he didn't want future generations to know. Even the location he chose for his demise and what he did in his final moments were intentionally erased."

Memories obtained from the Evil God's Undying Blood... This meant that what Jasmine had just revealed was known only to her in the entire world. Or rather, now only to her and Yun Che.

But! But! But! What did any of this have to do with Fen Juechen!? He just wanted to know what bizarre things had happened to Fen Juechen; how had it led to revelations about the ancient era?!

Although, it was... quite interesting!

While it marked the end of the Era of Gods and a catastrophe that impacted the entire chaotic space, for Yun Che, it was ultimately too distant and ethereal. It had absolutely no bearing on his present, past, or future. Hearing it, he found it merely interesting, perhaps a little shocking... essentially no different from listening to a fabricated folk tale.

In comparison, he was far more interested in Fen Juechen's secret!