Chapter 1688: Spring Mud Plan

Jiang Fan also suddenly noticed something unusual. Before he could understand, a faint yet majestic voice enveloped the entire battlefield: "All on the battlefield, except for the Giant King, come to Wenhai Academy."

As soon as the voice fell, Jiang Fan, Venerable Zhenyan, Bai Hu, and the powerful experts from the Central Plains and other realms in the distance, were all enveloped by a spatial force. Then, with a whoosh, they vanished from their spots, successfully breaking free from the tide of ancient giants.

Jiang Fan felt a wave of dizziness. When his feet touched the ground, he found himself in a academy surrounded by bamboo groves. It was Wenhai Academy, clearly protected by a sage-level formation. Inside the academy, without exception, all those who had experienced the first stage of the Five Declines of Heaven and Man, as well as several Great Venerables, had been teleported there.

"Xingyuan, why didn't you act sooner?" Great Venerable Red Devil, clutching his broken arm, couldn't help but question him. "With so much righteous qi, if we had made a wish earlier, our previous battle wouldn't have been so difficult." Not only him, but several other Great Venerables also frowned, looking at the blue-robed middle-aged man standing with his hands behind his back in the academy. As the Great Venerable of Hunyuan Province, his absence throughout the entire battle was truly inexplicable.

Great Venerable Xingyuan turned around and looked at them with a solemn expression. Only after a quick glance at them did he manage a slight smile, sighing with relief: "The casualties are far lower than expected, a blessing for the Central Plains."

"I asked you a question!" Great Venerable Red Devil said, displeased.

Only then did Great Venerable Xingyuan look at Great Venerable Red Devil. He cupped his hands and said, "Senior Red Devil, since the great defeat of the Central Plains a thousand years ago, Hunyuan Province has been preparing for today."

He raised his foot and stomped on the ground. Crackle, crackle— The entire ground of Wenhai Academy cracked open, and the earth, buildings, and vegetation were all destroyed. But what was exposed beneath the ground was not the expected lava or other substances. Instead, it was wish-fruits. That's right, one after another, countless wish-fruits! They were piled up like mountains, filling the entire underground of Wenhai Academy, reaching deep down.

Great Venerable Red Devil was startled: "So many wish-fruits?" So-called wish-fruits are formed by Confucian cultivators above the Nascent Soul realm sealing their righteous qi before their passing. The number of wish-fruits before them was in the thousands!

Great Venerable Xingyuan looked at the wish-fruits underground, his face filled with reverence, and said: "Ten thousand years of war, a millennium of recurring catastrophe, generation after generation of people have suffered immensely. Our Confucian lineage prides itself on bringing peace to all ages and inheriting the lost wisdom of ancient sages. However, the ancient sages are unseen, and peace cannot be found. We have failed to live up to the teachings of the Confucian forefathers. Therefore, the Great Venerables of Confucianism a thousand years ago resolved to completely eradicate the giant menace and devised a plan to eliminate the ancient giants. It is named... Spring Mud."

Everyone murmured to themselves. Spring Mud? What kind of plan is this? Worth a millennium of preparation by the Confucian cultivators of an entire province?

Great Venerable Xingyuan said lightly, "This plan is... the sinking of Hunyuan. To sink into oblivion, taking all the ancient giants with it, and forever depart from the skies above the Central Plains!"

Rumble— It was as if countless thunderbolts exploded above their heads, leaving everyone's minds blank. What were the Confucian cultivators going to do? Sink an entire Hunyuan Province?

Great Venerable Red Devil trembled slightly, scolding, "Are you insane? If an entire province sinks, will the sages spare you?"

Great Venerable Xingyuan smiled with relief: "When I make the ancient grand wish for the sinking of Hunyuan, I will likely no longer be in this world."

Everyone was too shocked to speak, their throats seemingly choked, unable to utter a word. Indeed, how could such an ultimate grand wish to sink an entire province come without a price? No wonder Great Venerable Xingyuan didn't intervene throughout the battle. He needed to maintain his physical condition to prepare for making the wish. Only then could he complete the wish before his death.

Great Venerable Red Devil's aged eyes reddened as he looked at the wish-fruits underfoot. How could these be mere righteous qi? They were clearly the will of Confucian cultivators, sustained for a thousand years. They were the beautiful wishes of generation after generation of Confucian cultivators for people a thousand years in the future. The tomorrow they could not attain, they hoped their descendants would see.

"Xingyuan..." Great Venerable Red Devil's old tears fell as he trembled and stepped forward, grasping his arm, a profound sense of shame washing over him: "I'm sorry, it's our generation's fault. We over-extended the Central Plains, creating an age of prosperity, yet failed to destroy the Heavenly Realm, leaving you with endless troubles. Now, your generation still has to keep sacrificing yourselves. I'm sorry..."

Great Venerable Xingyuan held her arm and shook his head: "Our predecessors did their best. So many sages fell, and so many nameless martyrs sleep forever. How could we, their descendants, dare to blame them? Now, let us, their descendants, inherit your will, completely eradicate the ancient giants, and forever eliminate future troubles for our next generation."

Great Venerable Red Devil was filled with inexpressible shame. The thought of having just accused Great Venerable Xingyuan of standing by made her feel even more mortified. With determination in her eyes, she said, "Let me make the wish later. The battle left unfinished a thousand years ago, let this old bone of mine bring it to an end!"

Great Venerable Xingyuan patted her arm and chuckled softly, "Senior, you've been tired for a thousand years. Please rest well. Besides, only those undergoing the Five Declines of Heaven and Man can make such a grand wish."

After speaking, he glanced sideways at the crowd, seeing Jiang Fan and Venerable Zhenyan, who was holding Jiang Fan's arm. A gleam of light appeared in his eyes. His last concern could also be laid to rest.

Venerable Zhenyan parted her red lips; she, too, was moved by Great Venerable Xingyuan and Hunyuan Province's millennium-long plan. However, thinking of how Great Venerable Xingyuan had let her mother down, she turned around and walked away. Jiang Fan reached out, wanting to stop her. Great Venerable Xingyuan was about to sacrifice himself; was she still so stubborn?

"Never mind, let her be." Great Venerable Xingyuan walked over, patted his shoulder with a relieved expression: "Good lad. I truly misjudged you; you are far more outstanding than I imagined."

Although he was not physically on the battlefield, his paper doll clone had always been present. He personally witnessed how Jiang Fan, relying on his domain and poisonous mist, twice turned the tide of battle, and watched as he returned crowned with the pillar of light, signifying the first place in the Ancient Hunt. Each heroic feat filled him with profound emotion. The little rascal who took advantage of his daughter back then was now a hero who saved the Central Plains.

Jiang Fan said, "The blue wish paper you gave me played a huge role." Without that wish paper, he might not have been able to return to the Central Plains, let alone bring so many people back with him.

Great Venerable Xingyuan shook his head: "If the same wish paper were given to someone else, would they necessarily achieve what you did? Jiang Fan, your future will take you far. If possible, please take Zhenyan with you. If one day you no longer like her, that's fine, just let her go, but don't bully her, okay? She has no other family left in this world."

Jiang Fan's throat choked up. Before his death, Great Venerable Xingyuan's greatest concern was always his daughter. Jiang Fan pointed at his divine halo, his voice low: "Senior, I will never let her down."

Great Venerable Xingyuan smiled: "Thank you." Jiang Fan cultivated the Flawless Domain; since he made a promise, he would never break it. He could rest assured now.

Rumble— At the edge of the sky, the tide of ancient giants surged forward. Great Venerable Xingyuan, with his hands clasped behind his back, came to the front of the formation and said, "Jiang Fan, do you know why this plan is called Spring Mud?"