Chapter 24 The Bronze Coffin from the Immortal Ancient Era

“What? Five… five hundred thousand years?”

Xiao Ding’s eyes widened in shock, nearly popping out of their sockets.

One must know, from the Ancient Era until now, only about 250,000 years have passed.

“That’s right. And this doesn’t even rule out the possibility that these black sand grains formed later—the bronze coffin itself could be even older. Father, do you realize what this means?”

Xiao Yueying stared at Xiao Ding.

“This means that the Nine Dragons Pulling the Coffin originates from a far more ancient time, possibly even tracing back to the Immortal Ancient Era!”

Xiao Ding was completely stunned.

Just like when Xiao Yueying had first learned of the age of the Golden Crow Secret Realm, Xiao Ding’s long-held worldview collapsed in an instant.

“This… there must be something wrong with this. The Mythic Era had long since, long since…”

“Long since disappeared—is that what Father wants to say?”

Xiao Yueying interrupted, finishing his sentence for him.

Xiao Ding nodded. Even with the evidence of the black sand grains, he still couldn’t bring himself to believe it. After all, for the entire 250,000 years from the Ancient Era to now, the Mythic Era had always been a complete blank in the historical record.

And now, to accept that the Nine Dragons Pulling the Coffin originated from the Mythic Era based on a few black grains of sand—was simply impossible.

Xiao Yueying wasn’t surprised by Xiao Ding’s reaction. If this had been her ten days ago, she wouldn’t have believed something as absurd as “the Nine Dragons Pulling the Coffin comes from the Mythic Era” either.

But after her experiences within the Golden Crow Secret Realm, her thinking had undergone a complete transformation.

“What if I told Father that the Mythic Era never completely disappeared?”

Xiao Yueying looked directly at Xiao Ding as she spoke.

““What do you mean by that?” Xiao Ding asked in confusion.

“Father, didn’t you and the other elders ask me before where my inheritance came from? Actually, this inheritance of mine comes from a mythical secret realm,” Xiao Yueying said something truly shocking.

If the ‘Nine Dragons Pulling the Coffin’ had not appeared, she might never have revealed the existence of the Golden Crow Secret Realm. After all, as the only known mythical secret realm, the secret was far too significant — revealing it might bring disaster upon the Xiao family.

But now that the Nine Dragons Coffin had appeared, it proved that the Golden Crow Secret Realm wasn’t the only trace left from the Mythical Era.

In this case, the importance of the Golden Crow Secret Realm was greatly reduced. Rather than guarding the secret alone, it was better to tell Xiao Ding and rely on the power of the Xiao family to explore the second level of the secret realm.

Xiao Ding was still immersed in shock. Although he had suspected that Xiao Yueying’s inheritance had an extraordinary origin, he never imagined that it came from the Mythical Era — that long-lost, legendary age.

“Can you tell Father what kind of mythical secret realm it was?” Xiao Ding asked solemnly.

Xiao Yueying did not hide anything. She told Xiao Ding everything about the Golden Crow Secret Realm.

Seventy thousand years ago, during the Desolate Ancient Era, a three-legged Golden Crow was born beneath the Fusan Divine Tree on the Sun Star. His name was Di Jun.

His form spanned countless miles, soaring into the heavens, tall enough to rival the divine tree itself. His cultivation was beyond comprehension, with a mere flick, he could tear the firmament apart.”

Its might towered above all, establishing the Celestial Court of the Demon Race, standing proudly above the thirty-three heavens. With a wave of the Demon Summoning Banner, all demons bowed in submission.

He had ten sons, each born with the essence of the sun, soaring through the skies like blazing suns across the world. And the master of the Golden Crow Secret Realm was none other than the son of this supreme Demon Emperor—the Sixth Golden Crow Prince of the Celestial Demon Court!

Although Xiao Yueying had already laid the groundwork in advance, this history from the Mythical Era still deeply shocked Xiao Ding. His once unwavering heart began to waver.

If Xiao Yueying had merely obtained the Golden Crow’s blood essence, Xiao Ding might still have refused to believe her. But with even visual fragments of memories from the Mythical Era appearing, he could no longer refute it.

“Yueying, you just mentioned the Ancient Era and the Immortal Ancient Era—did you also learn of these from the Golden Crow Secret Realm?” Xiao Ding raised a question.

He still found it hard to believe the Mythical Era truly existed, and keenly noticed a flaw in Xiao Yueying’s words.

If the Golden Crow Secret Realm truly dated back 700,000 years to the Mythical Era, how could it possibly contain records of the eras that came afterward?

It would be like someone living during the Tang Dynasty knowing that the next dynasty would be the Song. Only then did Xiao Yueying realize she had misspoken. Unwilling to reveal the existence of Yan Fei, she could only say, “I learned that while traveling through the Southern Region. A great cultivator once deduced that the Mythical Era comprised five great epochs: the Chaotic, Desolate, Immortal Ancient, Remote Ancient, and Primordial Eras—each lasting 129,600 years. Only after these came the Ancient Era.”

Xiao Ding said, “That claim seems flawed. By your reckoning, the Mythical Era would be barely over 600,000 years? Are you saying this world has existed for less than a million years?”

Xiao Yueying was momentarily stunned. She hadn’t actually thought about it that way. It wasn’t until Xiao Ding pointed it out that she realized something was off. She immediately contacted Yan Fei with her divine sense.

The Mythical Era definitely lasted more than just over 600,000 years.

Yan Fei’s voice echoed in Xiao Yueying’s mind, speaking calmly and evenly.

“Back then, the Holy Lord of Tianyan Sacred Land attempted to use the Dao of Time to deduce the Mythical Era. He managed to deduce the Taikoo Era, the Primordial Era, the Immortal Ancient Era, and the Desolate Ancient Era. But when he tried to push further, he found himself powerless—he could only glimpse it from afar and discovered that the river of time had no end that could be traced. Therefore, everything before the Desolate Ancient Era, all the way to the very beginning of this world, was collectively named the Chaotic Ancient Era (Luangu Era).”

Xiao Yueying asked, “So you’re saying the Chaotic Ancient Era lasted more than 129,600 years?”

“Of course, far more than that. No one knows what the original state of this world was, nor when all things were first born. If we begin counting from there, then the Chaotic Ancient Era has lasted at least countless trillions of years. As for the Desolate Ancient Era, the Immortal Ancient Era, and the others that followed—they’re just a drop in the ocean compared to the Chaotic Ancient Era.”

Yan Fei’s voice drifted gently in Xiao Yueying’s mind.