Jack Byford netted a 96th minute equaliser to earn the Grecians a dramatic 3-3 draw with Stockport County on Saturday, a result that, combined with Cardiff's 3-1 win at Reading, ensured Brian Barry-Murphy's men officially sealed automatic promotion from League One.
Those Cardiff supporters who endured such a torrid campaign last time out can now live in hope that the club are building for a brighter future in the Championship - with the long-term aim of reaching the Premier League, for a third time, remaining alive.
For them, Saturday’s final home match of the season against Northampton cane be a farewell party, rather than anything more stressful
For the club, and their head coach, the focus can now switch to planning for the summer.
According to Transfermarkt, Cardiff have fielded a side with an average age of just 24.3 years this season, the second youngest figure - behind Peterborough United - in the third tier.
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The key driver in that sum was of course the club's relegation, which in turn led to the influence of the club's academy players rising significantly.
The aforementioned young guns will have benefited immensely from the rigours of a gritty and gruelling League One campaign, and will go into the Championship stronger as a result of their experiences in the third tier.
But experience also remains key.
Cardiff lost leaders such as Aaron Ramsey, Joe Ralls and Dimitrios Goutas last year, with experienced men such as Andy Rinomhota and Jamilu Collins also moving on.
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It would not be a surprise to see an experienced Championship head join the club during the close season, while Barry-Murphy could well utilise his links with Manchester City and relegated Leicester City when it comes to the loan market, more likely for younger untried talent.
Having already signed Harry Tyrer from Everton in January, there will undoubtedly be a huge emphasis on permanently securing the services of Nathan Trott.
The goalkeeper has excelled in his debut season in the Welsh capital, keeping 15 clean sheets up to the point Cardiff secured promotion - and then another in the Wednesday night victory over Port Vale.
Full-back is an area where the Bluebirds will likely strengthen.
Calum Scanlon has started just once since joining the club in January and will return to Liverpool following the conclusion of the campaign.
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On the opposite flank, Ronan Kpakio has shown plenty of promise and has even gone on to earn three Wales caps, although there is no doubting the 18-year-old is still learning the game, and it would be a huge ask for him to thrive in the Championship so early on in his senior career.
Similar applies to Cian Ashford, who at just 21 years of age has time to develop further.
There is no doubt that Cardiff now have a core group who look primed to attack the Championship, notably Rubin and Joel Colwill, Yousef Salech, Dylan Lawlor and other more experienced men such as Calum Chambers and Gabriel Osho.
Chambers has one year left to run on his deal while Ryan Wintle's contract expires this summer.
Full-back pair Perry Ng and Joel Bagan also see their deals expire at the end of June.
Then, there is the situation of having to fend off any potential interest in their players.
Top scorer Salech could well attract attention over the summer, and Wales international Lawlor will almost certainly receive interest as a result of his rapid rise with both club and country in 2025-26.
The Bluebirds did well to hand Salech fresh terms in January, with the striker now under contract at Cardiff City Stadium until the summer of 2030.
Cardiff also protected themselves when it came to defender Lawlor, who signed a new deal earlier this season until the summer of 2028.
Unlike a year ago, the upcoming summer can be one of excitement and promise for Cardiff.
Owner Vincent Tan will undoubtedly be pleased with the methods successfully implemented by Barry-Murphy so far, and with additional time to execute their summer work having secured promotion with three games to spare, Cardiff have given themselves the best possible chance of putting more blocks in place to continue their upward trajectory.
