Chapter 33: Youth and Old Age

## Chapter 33: Youthful Years, White Hair

Ye Fan stared at the dozen or so white-haired old people, speechless for a long time. They were undoubtedly his familiar classmates, but seeing them all transformed like this was truly frightening.

Pang Bo was also dumbfounded, feeling a mix of fear and trepidation. If he had turned out like this, he felt he would have wished for death.

The two quickly walked over to check on everyone. Fortunately, they were all breathing, and their lives were not in danger.

"Hmm?" Pang Bo then spotted Liu Yiyi in the grass. She showed no signs of aging, still appearing as delicate and gentle as before, with her eyes closed, looking vulnerable.

This filled Ye Fan and Pang Bo with joy. They had been good friends with Liu Yiyi since their school days, and now they felt even more sympathy for her, naturally hoping no further misfortunes would befall her.

Under an ancient tree, Ye Fan found Zhang Ziling. He looked to be in his forties. Although it seemed as if a period of his life had been lost, he wasn't as aged as Zhou Yi and the others.

"Handsome Ziling turned into an uncle."

"Better than becoming Grandpa Ziling, right?" Ye Fan and Pang Bo whispered to each other.

Soon, Liu Yiyi woke up. Seeing Ye Fan and Pang Bo, she gasped in surprise. Zhang Ziling also quickly regained consciousness. Upon realizing his condition, he couldn't help but let out a shout. Transforming from a vibrant young man into a mature-looking uncle was something no one could accept.

"Ziling, don't get agitated. Look at their current state, and you'll feel better." Hearing this, Zhang Ziling looked at Zhou Yi, Li Xiaoman, and the others, and was instantly stunned. He realized there was no "most tragic," only "more tragic."

"How could this happen..." He stared blankly, but looked much better than his previous state of despair.

Among the dozen or so people present, Ye Fan and Pang Bo had reverted to youth, Liu Yiyi remained unchanged, Zhang Ziling had lost twenty years, and everyone else had become frail old men and women.

Ye Fan and Pang Bo exchanged glances. They immediately recalled the translucent red fruits. When they ate them, they had only noticed the fragrant taste and the rapid recovery of their energy. Now, it was clear that those fruits were extraordinary, almost miraculous!

For unknown reasons, everyone had aged, except for those who had eaten the fruits, who resisted the erosion of time.

"What power stripped them of their youth and vitality?" Pang Bo wondered, completely baffled.

"I think it's most likely the Archaic Forbidden Zone," Ye Fan speculated.

Just by its name, "Archaic Forbidden Zone," one could understand its meaning: it was related to the archaic era, or a forbidden area that had existed since then. Even birds, beasts, insects, and ants avoided it; inside, it was desolate and lifeless, clearly a place of great danger and malevolence.

Yet, they had emerged safely without encountering any danger. This seemed illogical and made the name "Archaic Forbidden Zone" appear somewhat undeserved.

"Yes, it must be because of the Archaic Forbidden Zone!" Pang Bo also understood the crucial point.

According to their shared speculation, a terrifying power within the Archaic Forbidden Zone had stripped everyone of their youth and vitality. But why did it only manifest once they had left? This puzzled them.

"Perhaps it's a curse-like power," Ye Fan suggested. "Maybe once you enter the Archaic Forbidden Zone, whether you leave or not, and no matter where you are, you can't escape it once the curse activates."

Ye Fan and Pang Bo had to count themselves lucky. If they hadn't picked and eaten those strange fruits, they would likely be frail and old now too.

After some more time, everyone gradually woke up. The mountain peak was immediately filled with piercing screams that sent chills down one's spine, followed by continuous wailing.

Premature aging and white hair in their prime—this was truly the most tragic thing in the world. Being in their vibrant twenties, only to suddenly become white-haired and wrinkled, was unbearable, making them wish for death.

"Why did I become like this?" Zhou Yi tremblingly stretched out a hand, stroking his wrinkled skin, then pulled out a withered strand of white hair. His voice was incredibly old as he roared, "Why?"

Nearby, Wang Ziwen also shivered as he examined his own condition. His eyes were cloudy, his eye bags were as large as pigeon eggs, and he looked incredibly old. He stammered, "I don't believe it..."

"Ah..." Lin Jia was on the verge of collapse. Her screams startled the birds in the forest, sending them scattering.

Appearance was a woman's most vital asset, and beautiful women, in particular, cared deeply about their looks. For a naturally beautiful and alluring woman like her to suddenly find her fair skin dull, rough, and aged was more painful than death itself.

On the other side, Li Xiaoman was in similar agony, wishing she could commit suicide. If she had once been a pure and ethereal lotus, now she was not even a dried lotus leaf. Her dark hair had turned white, dull and withered like weeds. Her skin was deeply wrinkled and loose, her eyes cloudy, and her face lined with grooves.

Seeing Ye Fan approach, Li Xiaoman immediately shrieked, "Don't come closer!" She covered her face with her hands, crying incessantly, and then buried her head between her knees.

Ye Fan did not go closer, to avoid upsetting her. He loudly reassured everyone, saying, "Don't despair. In this world, even deities exist, so what can't happen? There must be a solution."

A pall of gloom hung over the mountaintop. Many were in unbearable pain, especially seeing Ye Fan and Pang Bo, who appeared to be only eleven or twelve years old. It was a tremendous shock. The vast majority had become decrepit, while these two had regained their youth. This stark contrast made many people's hearts bleed.

"Oh my God, God... you bastard!" Kai De was beside himself with rage, mixing Chinese and English to express his immense sorrow.

"Demon, don't get so worked up." Pang Bo walked over and, rather tactlessly, patted his shoulder, saying, "Growing old gracefully with your loved one is the most romantic thing in the world."

Kai De immediately burst into tears, whimpering like a child. "My girlfriend... she's not here. It's not romantic at all."

Pang Bo paused, glanced at Li Xiaoman, then said nothing and walked toward the others.

"Ye Fan, why didn't you two age?" Zhou Yi was the first to calm down. He stared intently at Ye Fan and Pang Bo, two bright lights shining from his cloudy eyes.

Everyone else also momentarily set aside their grief and looked over.

Pang Bo felt uncomfortable hearing Zhou Yi's words and, quite undiplomatically, retorted, "I say, Grandpa Zhou, you're not suggesting we're somehow responsible, are you? If we had such immense powers, we'd just become gods, not remain mere mortals."

Lin Jia stopped crying and looked at Ye Fan, asking earnestly, almost pleadingly, "Ye Fan, tell me the truth, how can we regain our youth? How did you two do it?"

In response, Ye Fan could only offer comfort and hope. The strange red fruits had long been eaten; there was no other way.

"Let's leave here... and go to that immortal palace!" Zhou Yi shakily stood up, pointing towards the distant tall mountain where palaces stretched out, resembling heavenly dwellings descended upon the mortal world. Although his body had aged, his mind remained sharp, and he clearly identified their only hope: if immortal beings resided there, all their problems could be solved.

Everyone supported each other as they descended the mountain. Many were frail and moved very slowly, so Ye Fan, Pang Bo, Liu Yiyi, and Zhang Ziling had to constantly move back and forth to assist them.

"Grandpa Zhou, Grandpa Wang, I'll help both of you walk." Pang Bo positioned himself between them, taking Zhou Yi with his left hand and Wang Ziwen with his right. Wang Ziwen offered a bitter smile in response, while Zhou Yi remained expressionless.

For some reason, Li Xiaoman chose Ye Fan to support her, but she said nothing on the way, only weeping continuously, eventually almost crying herself unconscious.

"What's going on? Why is there still a mountain between us?" Ye Fan and the others sensed something was wrong. There was clearly only one mountain separating them from the high peaks where the immortal palace stood. Yet, after arduously climbing over one peak, they looked ahead only to find another mountain still separating them, as if nothing had changed.

"For some time now, no matter how much further we walk, the distance between us and that immortal palace doesn't seem to change. What's happening?"

They looked again, walked forward again, climbed another mountain again, but the result was always the same. At this point, everyone understood: they simply could not reach it.

"It's time to make a choice. Perhaps we shouldn't continue towards it. It seems to be an unreachable labyrinth."

Suddenly, a foul, fishy smell assaulted them. The trees swayed, and a black ferocious beast, five meters tall, stood upright and lunged towards them, its sharp claws gleaming. Its body was covered in thick, half-foot-long black fur, making it look terrifying. Its physique resembled an ape, but its head was incredibly bizarre, possessing a beak over a foot long, like an intelligent bird-demon. They had never seen such a beast before.

Most of the people present were immediately terrified, and two even collapsed to the ground. If such a monstrous, ferocious creature were to catch them, they would surely be torn apart.

"Ye Fan, be careful!" Pang Bo shouted. Since Ye Fan was directly in the beast's path, Pang Bo frantically swung the Great Thunderclap Temple bronze plaque and charged forward.

Ye Fan pushed aside the two people next to him and, holding the Vajra Pestle he had obtained from Liu Yunzhi in his right hand, swung it powerfully forward.

"Thud!" The Vajra Pestle collided with a gleaming claw, instantly bending the black beast's hand, clearly breaking its bones.

Everyone was stunned, attributing it to the power of the Vajra Pestle. Only Ye Fan understood that Liu Yunzhi had already expended the last trace of the pestle's divine power, and this strike was entirely due to Ye Fan's immense physical strength.

He was greatly astonished, knowing that his former self could never possess such immense power. However, ever since his rejuvenation a short while ago, he had felt an overwhelming surge of energy throughout his body, as if he possessed the divine strength to tear apart tigers and hurl elephants!

The monstrous beast let out an ear-splitting shriek, its beak opening wide as it fiercely pecked at Ye Fan, while its other gleaming giant claw slammed down violently.

Ye Fan moved with extreme speed, dodging with incredible agility. He flashed behind the beast, then powerfully swung the Vajra Pestle, striking heavily against its spine. The sound of bones shattering instantly echoed.

"Thud!" It was hard to imagine the sheer force involved. The five-meter-tall black beast was sent flying like a puppet for eight or nine meters by the Vajra Pestle, landing heavily on the ground. After struggling twice, it became motionless.

Everyone was wide-eyed and could hardly believe it. The 'barbarian's' body had shrunk, appearing like an eleven or twelve-year-old boy, looking more refined and quiet. Yet, his strength and speed had reached astonishing levels, leaving everyone in shock.

With the danger averted, everyone breathed a sigh of relief. Then, a flurry of discussion erupted; they couldn't understand why Ye Fan possessed such divine strength, feeling both envy and jealousy.

The sky gradually darkened, and the last hint of sunset faded. Still unwilling to give up, they climbed over another mountain peak, only to find that the immortal palace was still separated by a mountain, the distance seemingly unchanged.

At this point, everyone was completely disheartened and decided not to proceed further in that direction.

But just then, a streak of colorful light suddenly appeared in the sky, like a rainbow stretching across the heavens, exceptionally striking against the dim sky.

"That's..." Everyone was startled. Within that rainbow light was a human figure, capable of moving freely through the sky, soaring through the air. This was definitely no mortal!

"Whoosh!" The streak of rainbow light suddenly changed direction, instantly flying towards them at a breathtaking speed, like a rainbow streaking across the sky, arriving in the blink of an eye.