Douluo Continent: Azure Dragon Slays Evil, Qilin Suppresses the World

Zi Ji looked at Xuan Qing with some worry in her eyes. He lay there staring blankly at the sky, not saying a word for a long time.

"Senior, are you alright?"

Xuan Qing snapped out of his daze and shook his head.

"It's nothing, I just figured some things out."

He sat up and dusted himself off. His eyes cleared a little.

He figured it out.

Why is the Azure Dragon, which is relatively gentle among the Four Divine Beasts, so domineering with a weapon that ignores defense, doubles the damage, and forcibly binds itself to its master after recognizing them, making it impossible to steal?

He remembered a saying from his past life.

Even the true Buddha has the wrath of Vajra; the Bodhisattva's lowered brows and the Vajra's wrathful eyes are both expressions of compassion.

Or to put it another way, killing is for the purpose of protecting life; killing those who deserve to be killed and saving those who deserve to be saved.

He understood everything now: why the Azure Dragon, while wielding the power of eternal life, also controlled the thunder that could destroy the world.

Wood represents benevolence, Thunder represents ruthlessness.

Unconditional mercy cannot bring lasting peace; sometimes, swift and decisive action is the true form of compassion.

Xuanqing looked at Ziji and suddenly asked a very philosophical question.

"Hime, what do you think is the meaning of life?"

Zi Ji was clearly taken aback, not expecting him to ask that. She thought about it carefully before answering.

"This junior is unaware that, aside from an anomaly like Bi Ji, we soul beasts are born into a world where the strong prey on the weak."

"Either become strong and devour other soul beasts, or be devoured by other soul beasts. It's that simple."

Xuan Qing smiled, a very complex smile.

"Yes, you soul beasts are that simple, but soul beasts and humans are actually both very simple."

"Life is about being born and living on, but some people live while making it impossible for others to live."

He paused, his voice turning icy, even carrying a hint of murderous intent.

"Then they shouldn't be alive."

Xuan Qing looked at the corpses scattered on the ground, stretched out his palm, and a ball of flame ignited in his palm.

The flames were thrown out and covered the entire village, creating a huge fire that burned fiercely, engulfing all the corpses, bloodstains, and remains.

"Dust to dust, ashes to ashes, may you rest in peace in the earth."

Xuan Qing reached out again, and the earth-yellow soul power surged violently in his palm, burying all the charred marks underground.

"Let's go back to Sunset Forest."

Zi Ji nodded and used her soul power to lift Xuan Qing up. The two of them soared into the sky and flew towards Sunset Forest.

Xuan Qing remained silent throughout the journey, lost in thought about life and about killing.

Half an hour later, they returned to Sunset Forest and landed inside the Ice and Fire Yin-Yang Well. Dugu Bo heard the commotion and came out to investigate.

"Young master, you're back."

Dugu Bo then noticed that Xuan Qing's expression was somewhat abnormal.

Xuanqing didn't say anything, but walked to a corner, sat down cross-legged, and began to cultivate with his eyes closed.

Dugu Bo looked at Zi Ji and asked in a low voice.

"Senior, the young master... seems a little different?"

Zi Ji nodded and didn't hide anything, recounting what had happened on the way, from encountering the Fallen Ones to Xuan Qing's massacre.

She recounted her later remarks and the final act of setting fire to the village in great detail, leaving nothing out.

Dugu Bo fell silent after hearing this. The fallen deserved to die, that was the case. He had killed many when he was young, and he never hesitated.

But the saying, "Some people live but make it impossible for others to live, then they shouldn't live," is also true.

This statement was too harsh, but it was also very true. As Dugu Bo thought about it from this perspective, he became more and more alarmed.

Those who prevent people from living are no different from the degenerates, including nobles, empires, and royalty.

In particular, the Heavenly Emperor is the Snow Night Emperor, who appears benevolent on the surface but has done a lot of dirty work behind the scenes.

The buying and selling of slaves was common in the land, and nobles even took pleasure in it. Weren't those slaves human beings?

They wanted to live too, but nobody cared.

Dugu Bo suddenly realized that he had never thought about these things before. He had lived for decades, and all he cared about was cultivating, becoming stronger, and protecting his granddaughter.

He rarely cared about the outside world, but now, after being awakened by Xuan Qing's words, he realized just how complex the world really is.

The world is not black and white, but gray.

Dugu Bo smiled bitterly: "I never thought that after living to such an old age, I would still have a narrower perspective than a child."

Zi Ji didn't speak, but just looked at Xuan Qing. She felt that Xuan Qing had changed, but she couldn't quite put her finger on what had changed.

Is it the look in their eyes? Is it their demeanor? Or something deeper?

The following morning, after waking up, Xuan did not continue cultivating, but instead sat on a large rock in a daze.

My mind is still preoccupied with the question of the heart in this mortal world. Wasn't yesterday's question a question of the heart?

Kill those who deserved to be killed, save those who deserved to be saved, and understand morality—isn't that enough?

He scratched his head, feeling somewhat irritated. The world is full of wonders, and people's hearts are all different; there must be other aspects as well.

Killing alone is certainly not enough; he needs to experience more and see more clearly.

Xuanqing suddenly had a thought: if he became a great demon, would the Azure Dragon strike him down with lightning?

It's not impossible!

The Azure Dragon symbolizes auspiciousness and righteousness. It inherently carries the meaning of eliminating evil spirits and protecting the right path. It naturally leans towards justice and will never tolerate evil.

The same goes for the Qilin; its core meaning is peace and benevolence. If the person who inherits its power is a great demon, these two will probably personally cleanse the sect.

Xuan Qing shuddered. Luckily, he wasn't that freakish, or he wouldn't even know how he died.

He now understood why there was no time limit for the assessment.

If you can't even get past this hurdle, you'll be stuck indefinitely, and there's no point in going to the subsequent assessments; going would just be suicide.

But what exactly is the question posed by the questioner "asking about one's heart in this mortal world"?

Is it asking about good and evil? Is it asking about one's true nature? Is it asking about choices? Or is it asking about... the Way?

Xuanqing scratched his head, increasingly confused. He stood up and wandered around the herb garden.

His mind was a jumbled mess, like a tangled mess. He forced himself to calm down and slowly sort it out.

Suddenly, a fundamental question came to his mind: Who am I?

Is it that overworked office worker who works overtime every day? Or is it Xuan Qing in this life? Is it the incarnation of the Azure Dragon? Or is it myself?

This is a philosophical question, but it's something you have to figure out. If you don't even know who you are, what's the point of asking this question?

Xuanqing sat by the spring and began to think seriously.

My memories of my past life are very clear: working overtime, quitting my job, being hit by a car, and then transmigrating here as a skinny monkey.

After awakening his martial soul, he received the inheritance of the Azure Dragon and the Qilin, and has come this far, killing and saving people along the way.

But these are all experiences, not answers; it is profound and clear, yet it is not profound and clear.

The Azure Dragon incarnation is an identity, not its essence. What is its essence?

A person who wants to live, a person who wants to live comfortably and meaningfully!

The question of the heart in the mortal world is about one's true nature. What is one's true nature?

It's about the most genuine thoughts and the most fundamental desires. But what exactly are the most fundamental desires?

Another side of yourself? The dirtiest and most depraved side?

All living beings have desires; the absence of desire simply means that one has not yet encountered what one desires.

Xuanqing admitted that he was a vulgar man who wanted power, wealth, beauty, and strength.

But he has a bottom line and will not resort to any means necessary. This is the moral compass he inherited from his previous life, and it is also the bottom line he adheres to in this life.

He suddenly understood something and directly used fire to draw a Tai Chi symbol on the ground, with Yin within Yang and Yang within Yin.

The question of life is not about right or wrong, good or evil, but about understanding and accepting oneself.

Accept your kindness, and accept your darkness, even the darkest and dirtiest version of yourself is still yourself.

Accepting your imperfections is the true way to be yourself, but is that enough?

Not enough! Absolutely not enough.