Chapter 1972 - 1968: A Gentleman’s Agreement
Nuwa was punished by Pan Gu for hurting Ye Fan, and Pan Gu temporarily imprisoned Nuwa.
But even with Nuwa imprisoned, since the celestial challenge is impending, this imprisonment will soon end. Pan Gu is aware of the urgency of the situation and cannot place all his hopes on Ye Fan alone. If possible, he must rely on the forces of the ancient cultivators to counter the celestial challenge, which is the most prudent method.
After Pan Gu imprisoned Nuwa, Fu Xi did not object. At this time, Fu Xi still needed to see Ye Fan; he was carrying Pan Gu’s orders.
"You go to see Ye Fan, but remember not to put too much pressure on him. The celestial challenge is about to happen. Though the time may seem lengthy, overall it won’t be long. I can no longer create a world for him to train in solitude for thousands or tens of thousands of years since his cultivation level is very high. I can’t compress his cultivation into it. Everything will have to rely on him."
After speaking, Pan Gu gave a slight nod, and Fu Xi hurriedly headed toward Earth.
Meanwhile, on Earth, Ye Fan had just improved his injuries slightly when he sensed Fu Xi approaching. He realized that he might face many troubles before the celestial challenge.
Ye Fan stood up and said, "Zhao Jun, Min Shang, you both should temporarily avoid this. I’ll meet the visitor."
"Okay, Ye Fan, please be careful." Li Zhaojun said, with a hint of tenderness in her eyes.
Ye Fan kissed her on the forehead, which made Li Zhaojun and Min Shang return to Hua Hai City first. He didn’t plan to meet Fu Xi on Earth, intending to meet directly in outer space to avoid potential impacts of these ancient cultivators on Earth’s inhabitants.
When Ye Fan entered outer space, Fu Xi understood his purpose and refrained from entering Earth’s vicinity directly. Instead, they met in the vacuum of space. Fu Xi’s body was very stable. Ye Fan thought that Fu Xi’s cultivation was above Nuwa’s, and the gap between them was considerable. The true contender against Pan Gu wasn’t Nuwa, but Fu Xi.
"Ye Fan, it’s good to see you’re alright. As for Nuwa hurting you, maybe she was just annoyed; please don’t hold it against her," Fu Xi said, apologetically.
Ye Fan scrutinized Fu Xi and replied, "Is this your way of apologizing?"
"What else do you want? Nuwa hurting you wasn’t our intention. She hurt you out of impulse, mostly because your words angered her. She’s now imprisoned by Pan Gu. Isn’t that enough? For us ancient cultivators, this is already a sincere action," Fu Xi explained.
Ye Fan sneered, "Your sincerity seems nothing more than perfunctory excuses to me. But I won’t act against you because my cultivation was less than Nuwa’s. Being hurt by her just indicates my lack of advancement in cultivation. Next, I plan to challenge you ancient powers."
"Don’t think about challenges yet. Focus on how to train the chosen one. If the chosen one’s cultivation doesn’t reach the level to save from the celestial challenge, do you think you have much chance to challenge us?" Fu Xi said, "If you find training alone difficult, we can lend a hand. Together with Pan Gu, we’ll create a closed time-space for her to train in. This method is much better than using real-time for training. What do you think?"
Hearing this, Ye Fan frowned. From what he knew, if someone’s cultivation were high, entering compressed time-space is difficult. Like those in great families who experience hundreds of thousands of years of change in just days due to less internal energy. If someone creates a closed time environment, they could extend the timeline.
But Ye Fan couldn’t do it because his cultivation had reached a level to challenge Pan Gu. Even if Pan Gu and Fu Xi believed he could resist the celestial challenge through prolonged training, they couldn’t create a substantial time discrepancy environment for his training.
While Ye Fan couldn’t do it, Lan Jing could, as Lan Jing’s cultivation wasn’t high. She could train in such an environment for years.
"No need," Ye Fan straightforwardly declined Fu Xi. "Your kindness doesn’t count as kindness because your goal is to save from the celestial challenge. Saving the challenge must proceed with the most reasonable method. If you want to help, think of facing the celestial challenge yourself without using us insignificant humans. I have a way for her to reach her cultivation, so leave your concerns aside."
Fu Xi helplessly said, "It seems you’re quite stubborn, and this stubbornness isn’t necessarily good. You should understand that in ancient cultivating systems, many shortcuts exist. While your cultivation differs from ours, it doesn’t mean the chosen one isn’t a remnant of the ancient systems."
"The chosen one is found by me, and what I must do is train her alone. If you find this unsuitable, you can forcibly take her away, and I will fight you to the death. If you don’t use hard means, please respect our human choices!" Ye Fan stated.
Fu Xi said, "In that case, I can only wish you luck. Nuwa won’t interfere with you again, but be wary of other forces disrupting you. We, ancient cultivators, will avoid entering Earth’s star region. Within these days, you should return to Pan Gu’s secret realm, where the power is abundant, and your training can yield double the result with half the effort."
"I prefer staying on Earth," Ye Fan said, "Even knowing the celestial challenge is near, I wish to save it in my way. Also, please keep away, ancient cultivators. This counts as a gentleman’s agreement. If after the celestial challenge a war must happen, then it won’t be among friends; agreements are void, and everything rests on the power at hand determining life and death."
"Alright, see you then." Fu Xi didn’t avoid the issue, declaring readiness to fight Ye Fan to the end.
As if two opponents now cannot start a fight, they must wait to resolve the formidable challenge first. Ye Fan’s cultivation was not as high as Pan Gu’s or Fu Xi’s, which increased the pressure on him. He had to make use of this last day’s time to reverse the situation.