The Endless Promise

122. Into The Past

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'I must find the black butterfly!'

Bruised and battered, Fei Yun struggled to his feet, hacking out a spatter of blood as he cast a few seals.

The black butterfly had long vanished from his side, but he wasn't completely foolish... Nor was he entirely a lost cause.

He had known full well that the black butterfly was linked to the cloaked woman, and that allying with them meant betraying Sky Realm and working with demons, so he had planted a trail on the butterfly as a form of apology to Tianlong.

A hidden crystal feather which would lead Tianlong to the cloaked woman if anything happened to him.

But now, he intended to use that trail to find the cloaked woman himself!

'There's no way it's A-Fen beneath that cloak!

'Right...?' He thought- hoped, as he performed a hand seal and vanished, following his own feather trail...

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The City of Yu Shui, once known as a serene, beautiful, peaceful, prosperous city, had been revealed to be a lie lasting thousands of years, and the luscious and perfect landscape had been replaced by desolation and decay as far as the eyes could see.

Adding to the sorry state of the city, so much was happening this night, that none present could remember the beautiful luscious city which they had admired mere hours ago.

At the heart of the City sat the arena and platform, now reduced to a collection of fog and ruins, the depressing view somehow worsened by the same brief and salty rain which had been their salvation.

But the Mortals, almost a thousand in total, barely registered their surroundings as they silently watched Immortal Yin Xing, the Night Immortal.

By now, most had dried themselves, using internal qi to restore their robes and visage back to some semblance of elegance, and they watched as Yin Xing performed a few hand seals.

The black starry orb over his hand pulsed and swiftly expanded to cover the skies, surrounding them all with millions of twinkling lights.

"With the permission of the Sky Emperor himself, I'm here to show mortals all the events that have led to the recent catastrophe..."

More than a few necks craned in expectation as excitement rippled through the crowd.

Never in history had mortals been allowed to glimpse beyond the mortal veil, and most had only heard tales of Sky Realm - glorious stories brought down by those rare geniuses who ascended through cultivation.

Of course most of the older mortals had experienced the expedition to Caoyang, but that began with the very mortal journey to Red Grove City, where the Fate Immortal, Fei Yun, picked them up on his giant eagle and flew them right to Caoyang.

Along the way, nothing could be seen through dense clouds, and Caoyang itself was a constant battle for one's life, leaving them with no chance to appreciate its breathtaking views.

Those who survived were picked up again from Caoyang's base, and delivered right back to Red Grove City, so no true mortal, except perhaps Xu Weiyan, had truly seen Sky Realm!

And this was evident at the moment, as even the Grand Wulin Master wasn't daring to blink!

There were gasps as the stars around them glinted, unfurling into patterns that blossomed like silver petals, and the desolate ruins melted away, replaced by a sight that stole every breath.