To be clear, Changfeng Great Emperor was neither lacking a screw loose nor did he harbor any improper inclinations. His lingering thoughts about You Di stemmed entirely from admiration—admiration for You Di’s heaven-defying audacity that feared nothing, for his free-spirited and unrestrained nature, and even more for his heroic spirit that drew clear lines between gratitude and grievance.
Beyond that, he held deep respect for You Di’s mysteriously formidable power.
Changfeng Great Emperor was inherently belligerent, especially in his youth, when he bowed to no one. Even after ascending to become an Immortal Dao Great Emperor, his combative nature never faded. Throughout his life, he had battled Ghost Emperors, fought Demon Emperors, crossed blades with numerous Immortal Emperors and Demon Emperors, and even clashed with legendary experts from forbidden lands and sacred grounds, as well as elders from the Abyssal Ruins and Desolate Ruins.
You Di might not have been the most powerful opponent he had ever faced, but he was undoubtedly the one Changfeng Great Emperor admired most—bar none.
From the Ancient Era all the way to the Present Era, he had fought countless individuals and engaged in innumerable battles. Yet, the one battle he fought against You Di was the most exhilarating and the one that left the deepest imprint on his memory.
Even today, he vividly recalled how, back then, You Di had stormed into the Nine Heavens in a rage, painting the heavens with rivers of blood. Upon learning of this while in seclusion, Changfeng Great Emperor emerged immediately to confront him. Their clash carried them all the way from the Nine Heavens down to the Nine Underworlds, shaking the heavens and darkening the earth, reaching a level of madness that defied description.
As for how long they fought, Changfeng Great Emperor truly could not remember. He had completely lost all sense of time. By the end, not only was his consciousness blurred, but he had also descended into a state of frenzied madness. Who emerged victorious? He did not know. The only thing he knew was that when he next awoke, he had been rescued by an old senior. As for where Gu Qingfeng had gone, the old senior did not say, and he himself had no idea.
To this day, that matter remained a mystery, one that Changfeng Great Emperor still brooded over, desperately wishing to know who had ultimately won that battle.
Even now, recalling that fight caused Changfeng Great Emperor’s heart to surge and his blood to boil.
In this lifetime, he hoped to have another wildly frenzied battle with You Di.
“Master, Master, when you go to see You Di, can you take Lian’er along too?”
Lian’er approached, pleading excitedly.
“Oh? You want to meet him too?”
“Of course I do! I want to meet him so, so much!”
Previously, Lian’er had known nothing of You Di; she hadn’t even heard his name mentioned, as You Di was a taboo subject within the Nine Heavens, and no one spoke of him.
Later, by chance, she heard Changfeng Great Emperor mention that You Di was the opponent he respected most. From that point on, Lian’er became aware of this figure. Upon further inquiry, hearing the legendary tales surrounding You Di, her curiosity about his existence grew even stronger.
She had always longed to see just what kind of person this ‘most respected opponent’ of her master’s was.
She also desperately wanted to see what the You Di who had burned the Nine Heavens, slain in the Nine Underworlds, and shared ambiguous relationships with numerous Great Dao Madames actually looked like.
Especially after hearing about the events in the Lingluo Heaven Domain, her desire to meet You Di intensified.
Lian’er was simply too curious.
She was curious about what kind of existence You Di truly was—not only had he thrown the Great Desolate and the Myriad Heavens into utter chaos during the Ancient Era, but in the Present Era, he was a source of dread and fear for all the great powers of the Great Desolate, the Cavern Heavens, the Blessed Lands, and every other major faction. The Nine Heavens could do nothing about him, and even the Heavenly Dao dared not utter a word.
“Master, Master, is You Di really as terrifying as the legends say?”
“Oh? What legends have you heard?”
“There are simply too many legends about You Di! The one that left the deepest impression on Lian’er is: ‘The great sun falls, twilight descends, darkness strikes, You Di arrives—the twilight of immortals and demons, the end of heaven and earth…’ Oh! Right, there’s also the saying that has always circulated in the Great Desolate: ‘For madness, none surpass Gu Qingfeng; for audacity, none surpass Gu Tianlang; for arrogance, none surpass the Scarlet Flame King; for might, none surpass the dominance of You Di; for solitary pride, none surpass the Dao of You Di!’”
“Heh.” Changfeng Great Emperor chuckled. “Legends are often exaggerated; don’t take them too seriously.”
“Ah! Master, are you saying that all the legends circulating in the Great Desolate about You Di are false?”
“False isn’t quite the word, it’s just that…” Changfeng Great Emperor frowned, thinking for a moment before saying, “You Di isn’t as terrifying as the legends make him out to be. On the contrary, under normal circumstances, he’s no different from an ordinary person—perhaps even less remarkable than one. How should I put it… the fellow is vulgar, utterly and irredeemably vulgar. He might just be the most vulgar mundane person this master has ever seen, vulgar to the point of being beyond vulgar…”
“Ah?” Lian’er was astonished, seemingly unable to believe it. “Master, are you tricking me? How could You Di possibly be the vulgar person you describe? Lian’er has heard so many legends about him. Setting others aside, just consider what happened not long ago in the Lingluo Heaven Domain. Not only did he disregard our Nine Heavens, but he even dared to annihilate a Heavenly Mandate right in front of the Heavenly Dao! How could a mere mundane person do something so terrifying? What kind of mundane person could accomplish such a thing?”
“That’s precisely why this master said earlier that under *normal* circumstances, he is a vulgar, mundane person.”
“Then what about under *abnormal* circumstances?”
“Under abnormal circumstances, You Di… well, you just mentioned it yourself. He disregards both our Nine Heavens Immortal Dao and the Heavenly Dao. Not a single one of the Three Thousand Great Daos can catch his eye. That fellow… under normal circumstances, he’s a mundane person. But once he flies into a rage, he becomes simply…”
“Simply what?”
Changfeng Great Emperor shook his head and did not answer.
He had witnessed You Di in a state of complete, furious, rampaging madness. It was exactly as the legend described: ‘The great sun falls, twilight descends, darkness strikes, You Di arrives—the twilight of immortals and demons, the end of heaven and earth.’ That phrase had indeed originated from that very scene.
Back then, the Nine Heavens had employed every means possible to eradicate You Di. You Di endured again and again until he could endure no more. Then, throwing caution to the wind, he directly summoned the Nine Underworld Primordial Fire and set the Nine Heavens ablaze, causing numerous powerful experts to fall one after another.
The plight of the Nine Heavens at that time was indescribably tragic. And back then, Changfeng Great Emperor had not stepped in to intervene.
Firstly, he also felt You Di had been wronged, believing the Nine Heavens were too tyrannical—simply because of some so-called ‘variable,’ they could not tolerate You Di’s existence and were willing to pay any price to eradicate him. Even when it was clear they could not succeed, they remained obstinately deluded. Countless lives within the Nine Heavens were lost because of this.
Of course.
No matter how dissatisfied he felt inwardly toward the Nine Heavens, Changfeng Great Emperor was, after all, a Great Emperor of the Nine Heavens Immortal Dao. When the Nine Heavens faced a crisis, he could not simply stand by.
Upon learning of the events, he had initially intended to rush over immediately to stop it. Unfortunately, he was prevented by his Immortal Fate Dao Companion, Qianye Immortal King.
The last time You Di had stormed the Nine Heavens in rage, Changfeng Great Emperor had nearly lost his life at You Di’s hands. Qianye Immortal King, fearing for Changfeng Great Emperor’s safety, forbade him from going and even threatened to take her own life if he dared to leave. In the end, left with no choice, Changfeng Great Emperor had no option but to relent.