The Word of Heaven

Chapter 362 Ascension to Immortality

Bai Yingzhou remained silent.

His expression appeared calm, but deep within his eyes, a myriad of thoughts flashed like shooting stars as he made inferences based on that sentence.

It was unclear how much time had passed, until the night outside Weiyang Palace dissipated and was enveloped by the blazing sunlight, when a sigh filled with complex emotions slowly rang out.

"It's still the same old story."

Bai Yingzhou looked towards Baidi Mountain, remained silent for a moment, and then said, "The world is like an inn."

Gu Zhuo said, "Therefore, if you and I want to leave, the first thing we need to do is settle the bill."

Bai Yingzhou said, "The reason why Yuan Dai failed to transcend and ended up in that situation is because he was unwilling to settle this debt and even wanted to escape it, because his life was written on that debt."

"That's the truth," Gu Zhuo said calmly. "The Morning and Evening Bells and the Heavenly Court are both means that Yuan Dai uses to renege on his debts."

Bai Yingzhou asked, "Since the morning and evening bells can serve this purpose, why is it the reason he cannot transcend them?"

Gu Zhuo suggested, "Perhaps you could think about the Heavenly Court first."

Bai Yingzhou pondered these words and Yuan Dai's actions, lost in thought, and gained further insights from his reflections.

There is a simple truth behind this.

Nearly 10,000 years ago, Yuan Dai came to an inn called the Human World, where he ate well, drank well, and slept even better. The next few hundred years passed in the blink of an eye.

During this long period of time, he naturally forgot that he was just a tenant. One day, he had the idea of ​​leaving and put it into action, but the shopkeeper told him that he needed to pay the bill. So he had to make a choice in this bewilderment and shock.

Should you turn around and walk away as if nothing happened, or go forward?
Yuan Dai's decision was both wise and foolish.

Retreat first, then advance.

In the retreat that followed his first advance, he gave the Heavenly Dao Sect a seemingly infinitely beautiful but ultimately false ideal—the Heavenly Court.

Of course, this so-called Heavenly Court was just a backup plan he had prepared for himself.

However, it was precisely because of this foolproof plan that he was discovered by the Heavenly Dao during his second transcendence.

Once is never enough, so this world gave him the only option unrelated to death: the death that every cultivator who ascended to immortality and attempted to leave the mortal realm over the past ten thousand years had encountered.

In fact, Yuan Dai was a gatekeeper.

Upon thinking of this, Bai Yingzhou couldn't help but feel that the truth behind it was truly absurd and ridiculous, and genuinely laughable.

"The Heavenly Court was Yuan Dai's means to escape that situation, so what is the use of the Morning and Evening Bells?"

"lie."

Gu Zhuo calmly said, "A lie given to the Heavenly Dao."

The White Emperor understood and said, "That lie was to tell this world that the bell-bearer never came to this world, right?"

Having never been here, one is naturally pure and undisturbed; what need is there to talk about cause and effect?
Without cause and effect, one should naturally transcend.

Gu Zhuo pondered these words and fell silent once more.

Bai Yingzhou looked at him and continued, "This is a lie that will never be repeated. That's why Yuan Dai in Xuandu used every means to stop the bell from ringing and send you to your death."

If Yuan Dai did not ascend to immortality by the sound of the bell, then Yuan Dai was the one who suffered the bitter consequences.

Who made all of this happen because of him?

It's that simple.

It was never really complicated.

Ultimately, it all comes down to that debt being too heavy.

Bai Yingzhou said with deep emotion, "Let alone Yuan Dai being unwilling, throughout history, who has ever been willing to settle this debt?"

Gu Zhuo thought for a moment and said, "Actually, there are still people who are willing."

Upon hearing this, Bai Yingzhou pondered for a long time, then his eyes suddenly lit up, and he asked, "The fourth patriarch of the Yi River?"

"Ah."

Gu Zhuo said, "Only this person is willing to give up his clothes and his cultivation realm in return for this world, just to see the world beyond."

Bai Yingzhou exclaimed in admiration, "Truly worthy of being a sword cultivator."

Then he abruptly changed the subject, his smile vanished, and he uttered that sentence.

"But this is not the path you want to take."

The fourth generation patriarch of the Yi River Sect possessed nothing but his sword, and having no desires, he enjoyed great freedom.

Only such a person would be willing to risk their life for a glimpse of the heavens beyond.

"Ah."

Gu Zhuo wasn't so boring as to deny it, saying, "I'm not tired of living yet, so how could I bear to die?"

Bai Yingzhou said, "Therefore, the morning and evening clock is your only choice."

……

……

If one wishes to transcend, death will be the price that must be paid, because everything a transcendent person possesses comes from this world, whether it be their realm or their life, and when they depart, they should return everything cleanly.

However, once a person dies, all things cease, so what meaning is there in transcending death?

This is truly an extremely boring thing. A person like the fourth patriarch of the Yi River, who has no other attachments, is one in ten thousand years.

In this long period of time, spanning tens of thousands of years, there were certainly great cultivators who were unwilling to pay the price of death. They attempted to bypass the Heavenly Dao through various means and ascend to immortality.

Unfortunately, all these remarkable people met Yuan Dai when they took that first step toward success, and thus could only die.

Yuan Dai has now died and his teachings have vanished.

What should be done?

Ascension to immortality.

……

……

"From the current perspective, objectively speaking..."

Gu Zhuo said, "The morning and evening clock is indeed my best choice."

Bai Yingzhou laughed and looked at him, saying, "Then I have even less reason to agree to your request."

Gu Zhuo had no regrets.

From the moment he stepped into Weiyang Palace, he knew that the answer was bound to come; his words and actions were merely the best he could do.

If problems can be solved with words, why be trapped in the struggle between life and death?

Bai Yingzhou's voice was calm yet firm.

It will not change because time is reversed.

"This world has no meaning for me anymore."

He said, "Ascension to immortality is the ultimate meaning."

Gu Zhuo looked towards Bai Yingzhou.

The monarch's hair and beard were already white, but his eyes were still bright as the morning stars, showing no sign of aging.

It's like the rising sun slowly emerging from behind the mountains, wanting to illuminate all things in the world.

No one can sway the decisions made by such a person.

Who can turn this sunrise into a sunset?
However, the word "death" is not an option.

"and……"

Bai Yingzhou's gaze fell on Gu Zhuo, and he said, "In the end, we still lack such a battle."

Gu Zhuo remained silent.

At this point, to say things like "it's okay to not fight" would be extremely disrespectful.

"please."

Bai Yingzhou said.

Gu Zhuo nodded slightly and said, "Please."

The negotiations are completely over; all that remains is life and death.

This war, which has lasted for nearly two hundred years, is about to end today, and there will be no next time, because both of them have grown weary of it and are unwilling to continue.

……

……

"Yuan Dai, in order to make me determined to kill you, allowed me to read through countless books of Taoism, from ancient times to the present."

Bai Yingzhou spoke calmly, his words revealing his pride and disdain for concealment.

As the words were spoken, Gu Zhuo's gaze fell on the fragments of the morning and evening bell.

The moment they met, a divine light suddenly burst forth, but not a single ray of it spilled out into the Weiyang Palace; instead, it was fully revealed to the world outside the palace.

The four seasons of human life are displayed outside the palace at this moment.

Spring breeze and summer sun, autumn leaves and winter snow.

It sounded as if a bell was about to ring.

Gu Zhuo's eyes were calm.

The green robe was no longer fluttering in the wind, and frost clung to its hem.

He began to walk forward, toward the fragments of the dawn and dusk clock.

At the same time, Gu Zhuo appeared outside the ever-lit Weiyang Palace, as did Bai Yingzhou.

The figures were all moving towards each other, intertwining in various ways.

It was a flying sword piercing through the chest, a fist shattering the heart, countless magical techniques... All these figures were real, the realities presented by Gu Zhuo and Bai Yingzhou using the Morning and Evening Bells as their battlefield.

"What are your chances of winning?"

The White Emperor's voice suddenly rang out.

Gu Zhuo did not stop, his gaze passing through the fragments of the ancient bell that shone with Daoist energy, and said, "Perfect."

(End of this chapter)