Lan Yutian slowly recounted his experiences over the years. From his rebirth when he lost all memories, to the Heavenly Venerable You bringing him back to the Ghost Capital, then sending him out of the Ghost Capital and entrusting him to Shen Mu, to Shen Mu taking him traveling through the various academies and schools of learning, studying all manner of foundational runes.

Then to Shen Mu entrusting him to the elders of the Hidden Remnant Village, learning from them, then to the outbreak of the Jingping Calamity, his return to the Ghost Capital, and finally to the Lame Elder stealing him out of the Ghost Capital after the calamity. Only then did he realize that his experiences over these years had been so rich and varied, so utterly extraordinary. He spoke of wandering everywhere to comprehend the Dao, of taking in many disciples, of making many friends. He could not help but smile, stammering as he explained to his own remnant soul his various strange and wondrous divine abilities and ideas.

He recounted his many disciples as if counting his treasures, and spoke of matters between himself and his friends—how Big Head Shu Jun had been captured by an alchemist and soaked together with him in a medicinal vat for research; how Xu Shenghua wore a blank expression, yet within his chest beat a burning heart; how the Dao Master Lin Xuan was mature yet sly; how the Immortal Wang Muran, King of Little Yujing, was stubborn and obsessive; how the Southern Emperor Princess Yan'er always loved to wait on others; how the Kai Emperor Shen Ye was devoted to the way of the sword; how Shen Fengqing had nothing but food on his mind and would discuss with him how to make things taste better. . .

He had met so many interesting people that as he spoke, he could not help laughing aloud.

He did not know why he had so much to say. Though the Heavenly Venerable Yu was his remnant soul, he felt like his own beloved elder brother. The Heavenly Venerable Yu listened with a smile. Lan Yutian talked until sunset and still had not finished his story, then talked from sunset until the rising sun was about to appear.

The east grew white. The Heavenly Venerable Yu asked, "Did you never encounter danger?

" "Elder Brother bore it for me. " Lan Yutian turned to look at Shen Mu, who was in dream, and murmured, "He bore it all.

No matter how great the danger, he shouldered it alone. He wanted me to focus on comprehending the Dao, did not want those conflicts to disturb me, did not want me to get involved in those disputes.

I know his heart.

.

" "Do you know? " The Heavenly Venerable Yu propped his hands on the ground, leaning back at an angle, looking at the whitening sky. He turned his head to look at the self beside him and smiled. "My experiences were different from yours. Before the Longhan Era, the human race suffered too much; survival was hard.

Once, I wished so much that someone would bear all the suffering of the human race, that a hero would bear it.

Later I discovered that no one came to be that hero. So I stood up. If no one would be that hero, then I would. " His gaze was full of spirit. Though it was a time of suffering, he spoke of it with utmost ease. He said softly, "I had to exhaust my mind and strength. I had to, while raising my own power, divert my thoughts to ponder how to make the human race strong and mighty, how to find life within ten thousand dead ends.

I always felt very tired—body and mind both exhausted. For this ideal, I had to abandon my own path of seeking the Dao. I had to wait for more human powerhouses to rise. " He stood up, facing the rising sun, and spread his arms wide. "You are luckier than I. In this era, more people have risen. They are heroes, they are champions. They have shouldered the burden for you, carried the weight and moved forward for you.

Lan Yutian, seeker of the Dao—you are the true Lan Yutian! " His form slowly became transparent, memories like fleeting smoke and clouds. He turned back to look at Lan Yutian, a pure smile on his face. "I am not the true Lan Yutian. I am only the Lan Yutian suppressed and changed by the era.

The Heavenly Venerable Yu is, in the end, merely a segment of Lan Yutian's memory.

" He waved to Lan Yutian, bidding farewell to the self of this era.

Lan Yutian hurriedly rose, but saw the Heavenly Venerable Yu vanishing swiftly, leaving only a gentle, kind voice echoing. "This memory will hold you back. It will make you become the me of the past.

Let the memories of the past be buried along with history.

. .

" Lan Yutian reached out to grab him, but could not catch him—only a few strands of his own remnant soul. The strands of remnant soul sensed his spirit and drilled into his body, merging with him.

Lan Yutian looked at the newly risen sun, and before he knew it, tears streamed down his face.

He felt as though he had lost something, and yet as though he had gained something.

He walked toward the sun.

The sunlight gradually grew dazzling.

He raised a hand to shield his eyes and saw Shen Mu sitting on the ground, layer upon layer of dreams expanding outward.