The Word of Heaven

Chapter 355 Goodbye

Many days ago, Gu Zhuo said to Yu Sheng that he had met the founder of the sect.

He didn't say it outright at the time, but he wasn't entirely without thoughts in his mind.

He believed that the will of the heavens that lingered in the desolate mountains was the ancestor of the Heavenly Dao Sect who had ascended to immortality nearly ten thousand years ago—this deduction could explain almost all the questions.

Where did the hostility of the wasteland heavens towards him come from? Why did this will possess subjective initiative? What kind of wondrous realm was this? ... Every question could be answered reasonably from this.

Gu Zhuo thought this way from beginning to end.

Because this is the best truth.

Unfortunately, things don't always go as planned, and that's the truth of the matter.

Too many facts from the past that he had subconsciously ignored flashed before his eyes amidst the darkness of night and the threat of life and death, making it impossible for him to turn a blind eye any longer.

What are those facts?
Why is Yingxu an exception when no one in the Heavenly Dao Sect has ever practiced the Primordial Dao Scripture into demonic possession in thousands of years?

How could the Three Lives Pagoda, a treasure comparable to the Immortal Ascension Scroll, be so easily made into existence?
The Heavenly Mandate Sect is located in the southeastern hinterland, so why does Yingxu seem to be particularly fond of the scenery of the wilderness?

Or perhaps, knowing full well the perilous journey through the wilderness, he inexplicably left the Three Lives Pagoda in Chu Jun's hands, suggesting a pre-existing unease in his Dao heart.
More importantly, if even the Buddha, whose spiritual level was slightly lower, could leave behind a Zen thought that would last for thousands of generations, how could the Taoist patriarchs, who were at an even higher level, not be able to do the same?

Looking further back, when he became the leader of the Taoist sect a hundred years ago, he had already had conflicts with the so-called sages in the Tiandao Sect's ancestral temple. Why did he still suffer divine punishment despite being on guard?

Why did he happen to see that child named Lu Mingcheng among millions of people?

Of course, it's because that child was special enough that he couldn't ignore the past.

Looking back over a thousand years, who in that era could have caught his eye?

Everything has a traceable path.

Even Gu Zhuo's entry into this deadly predicament tonight was also due to the waxing and waning of fortunes.

This is such a boring and tedious fact.

……

Above the sky, in the sea of clouds.

Gu Zhuo held his sword horizontally, the blade pointing straight forward, directly at his patriarch.

Time slows down because of the sword's edge.

Throughout history, the two most remarkable people in Taoism, and indeed in all of humanity, have stood facing each other.

"Fullness and emptiness are me."

The voice was as ethereal as the figure, devoid of any emotion, repeating heavily: "I am not Yingxu."

Gu Zhuo was silent for a moment, then said, "It seems there's nothing else to ask."

Yuan Dai said, "If you're willing to listen, there will be a touching story."

Gu Zhuo said, "For example, Yingxu doesn't know that you are you?"

Yuan Dai said, "When he first came to the wasteland, he vaguely sensed this fact, but he was unwilling to admit and accept it, which is why he came a second time."

Gu Zhuo remained silent.

"The truth is that simple; it all boils down to finding the root of the problem."

Yuan Dai's voice remained indifferent, his gaze seemingly fixed on the depths of the mountains: "As for everything else, it's all just a cover for this."

Gu Zhuo remained silent.

Yuan Dai said, "After determining where he came from, Yingxu began to work tirelessly for you, because he knew that you died because of him."

From this moment on, the story begins to move you.

Even its tone has become warmer.

"To make you open your eyes again is the greatest obsession of Yingxu's remaining life, and he is willing to give everything for it."

"Just like he told you behind that temple, the childhood you spent together was the happiness he cherished for the rest of his life."

"He was happy to see you again, even if it was a reunion of less than twelve hours."

"Yes, from the very beginning, Yingxu never intended to live, which is the real reason why he didn't want to keep the Three Lives Pagoda with him."

"Why doesn't he want to live? Of course, it's because he knows that if he lives, he will surely kill you."

"Yingxu's death has indeed made things very complicated."

That's all. In just a few words, Yuan Dai recounted the past with a touch of emotion and wistfulness.

Gu Zhuo said slowly, "This is why you and Bai Yingzhou joined forces."

Yuan Dai said, "Compared to the one a hundred years ago, there is actually no difference."

Without hesitation, Gu Zhuo replied, "The day Bai Yingzhou stepped into the ruined Taoist temple in Yunmengze."

"good."

Yuan Dai said, "It's that simple."

Gu Zhuo said, "It's not a simple matter."

Yuan Dai said, "That is the direction of human affairs."

Gu Zhuo fell silent again.

"Immortality and emptiness are me, I am not brightness and emptiness."

Yuan Dai calmly stated: "Fullness and emptiness can be fullness and emptiness."

Gu Zhuo remained silent.

Yuan Dai looked at him, his voice slow and earnest: "Yingxu is your disciple, and you are his master, aren't you?"

Gu Zhuo said, "Is this a negotiation?"

"Do not."

Yuan Dai shook his head and said, "This is a compromise."

"You have become the person you were back then, and now we can meet again."

He said, "Then this is the best option."

Gu Zhuo asked, "What is the best?"

Yuan Dai was very patient and said, "Yingxu will be reborn and become the person you remember, while you will still be you. The war will end here, and what will remain is lasting peace."

Gu Zhuo said, "Aren't you resentful?"

“Cultivating the Tao is a long-term endeavor; one must strive for every moment, but also for eternity.”

Yuan Dai smiled and said, "There is still a long future to look forward to, why bother with endless days and nights?"

This statement is so calm, it succinctly and completely conveys the meaning of spiritual practice without holding anything back.

No one can deny that this was the right choice.

From a rational, self-interested, and all other perspectives, accepting this proposal is the best decision.

……

The sky was deathly silent.

The wind continued to blow, carrying the faint wails into everyone's ears.

The rain was still falling, like silk threads covering tens of thousands of different faces, bringing a refreshing but definitely not cold, cool feeling.

The war on the wasteland had ceased at some point, because people knew that victory or defeat was no longer in each other's hands. Rather than let death continue to come, why not look up at the sky and wait for the end?
……

……

Gu Zhuo closed his eyes.

Wait a moment before you move.

Yuan Dai watched the man and the sword quietly.

This kind of indifference is truly terrifying.

Breaking through the barriers between life and death, drawing his sword to cleave the heavens—this should have been a startling event.

Yet he remained calm throughout, without a trace of surprise in his eyes, as if it were all perfectly ordinary. Was it really ordinary?

Of course, this is unusual.

It's a rare sight, perhaps only once every thousand or ten thousand years.

Such composure in the face of such an unusual situation is enough to inspire awe.

Gu Zhuo remained silent.

Yuan Dai is not in a hurry.

There were things he hadn't said before, but his junior would surely understand.

Bai Yingzhou, who also participated in this war, is now seriously injured.

If one must find someone to seek revenge against, this is undoubtedly a more rational and feasible option.

Just then, Gu Zhuowei raised his head.

He gazed at the still indistinct, ethereal figure in the morning light, unsure whether he wanted to compare it with the portrait of the Heavenly Dao Sect, or something else entirely.

Yuan Dai looked at him with the same gaze.

Their eyes met at that moment.

This should be a momentous encounter that will be recorded in the history of spiritual practice.

This is what Yuan Dai thought.

With a touch of ease and composure.

Therefore, when he witnessed Gu Zhuo handing out the sword that had been held back, and the sword light gradually brightened from its tip, a look of bewilderment finally appeared in his eyes.

This sense of loss dissipated quickly, leaving only disappointment.

Yuan Dai said, "This is my world."

"Yes."

Gu Zhuo nodded gently and said, "This is your world."

The person who originally took heaven and earth and all things as his sacred space was never him, but his ancestor.

Ji Yuandai.

How can you defeat someone else in their world?

This seems to be an unsolvable problem.

The best example is Gu Zhuo himself.

Over the years, countless people have challenged him, only to be defeated in the end.

How can today be an exception?
A sword light of extreme power appeared in the sky above the wasteland.

The gap in the sea of clouds was mended by the sword light, and it became a brilliant expanse once more.

Yuan Dai stood with his hands behind his back, waiting for the sword light to advance.

An earthquake struck the mountains, causing countless snowflakes to surge down, forming a tsunami-like avalanche that claimed countless lives.

The vast plains were torn apart, and lava surged forth, painting the earth with new colors, while countless corpses were reduced to ashes.

North of the Northland, the entire wasteland is enduring the sword strike delivered by Gu Zhuo.

It was the human world that was cut down by the sword light.

Or will the sword light fade away first?

The answer is obvious.

Yuan Dai reached out, flicked his fingers, and prepared to kill his junior once again.

With regret, he said to Gu Zhuo, "Goodbye."

As the words fell, a tiny speck of light descended from the heavens to earth.

Seemingly slow, but in reality, it happened in an instant; this speck of light had already reached the sea of clouds.

Yuan Dai frowned, glanced at the light dust approaching him at an unimaginable speed, and the stardust constantly breaking off from it, and looked south.

There, only one person can do this.

But what's the point?

Yuan Dai thought indifferently, then flicked his finger at the light dust, causing it to fall into silence.

Even so, the sword light still failed to reach him.

Countless tiny cracks appeared on the tip of the sword, like a mirror about to shatter.

The sea of clouds surged endlessly.

Even with the combined efforts of the two most powerful cultivators in the world, they still could not defeat Yuan Dai, and the result would be a draw.

Unless a third party appears at this point.

Yuan Tai's Daoist mind was suddenly unsettled.

The moment that thought crossed his mind, the third person arrived.

Or rather, it was a Buddha.

Buddha.

A beam of Buddha's light bloomed in his eyes like a flower, but it was accompanied by the Buddha's stern and angry shout.

"Yuan Dai, you beast, I'm going to fucking fuck you!"

……

As the sword light dissipated, countless thunderclaps suddenly resounded in the sky.

The mountains collapsed as a result, creating countless abysses across the desolate land.

as well as.

A straight sword path that cuts through the mountains.

The so-called "way of the sword" is the path cleaved by the sword's edge.

Gu Zhuo stood in front of Yuan Dai.

Not far, not near.

Yuan Dai's brows were tightly furrowed as he looked down at the sword blade that had pierced his heart, feeling the real pain he hadn't felt in nearly ten thousand years, his eyes filled with a sense of bewilderment.

Countless rays of light flew out from his wounds and scattered across the earth.

After a moment of silence, he shook his head and said, "I don't understand."

"This is why you died."

Gu Zhuo paused, looked at Yuan Dai and said, "You told me yourself that Yingxu didn't want to live."

Yuan Dai was stunned.

Gu Zhuo said earnestly, "And I am a master who respects my disciples' wishes."

Yuan Dai laughed, a laugh full of self-mockery, and finally said, "Burning our remains to thank our master, we are truly heartless people."

After saying this, he transformed into all things and died.

Whether it's rain, clouds, snow, sunshine, or starlight hidden in the sky.

Gu Zhuo closed his eyes.

Falling from the clouds to the earth.

Suddenly a wind comes, lingers, and slowly swirls.