126: Chapter 126 The Vanished
Middle Stage Golden Immortal.
Lu Mingyuan stood there, sensing the tree that had just sprouted in his Dantian.
The roots of that tree were buried very deep.
How deep?
Deep enough to feel Chaos.
Deep enough to feel the endless things beneath Zixiao Palace.
Deep enough to feel the Dao of those sitting beside him.
It wasn't eavesdropping.
It was a natural sensing.
Like standing in a mountain forest and being able to feel the wind.
Like standing by the sea and being able to feel the tides.
Like standing under the starry sky and being able to feel the movement of the stars.
He stood there, surrounded by those Daos.
There were those of order, of compassion, of integrity, of protection, and of freedom.
Those Daos flowed around him like rivers.
Some rivers were willing to draw close to him.
Some rivers bypassed him from a distance.
But whether they drew close or bypassed him, he could feel them all.
He knew of their existence.
Suddenly, Zixiao Palace fell silent.
That kind of silence was different from before.
Before, it was the silence after listening to the Dao, a silence of digestion.
Now, it was a silence of waiting.
Everyone was waiting.
Waiting for someone to speak.
Waiting for the old man sitting in the deepest part to speak.
Taishang Laojun stood up.
He looked at Lu Mingyuan.
He watched him for a very, very long time.
Then, he spoke.
"the one that escaped."
He spoke these words very slowly.
Slowly, as if he were carving them.
Slowly, as if to carve these words onto the stone walls of Zixiao Palace, into the void of Chaos, and into everyone's hearts.
Lu Mingyuan stood there, listening to these words.
It wasn't the first time he had heard them.
In Chapter 77, Xuanweizi had said—
"the one that escaped."
In Chapter 124, Hongjun had also said—
"You are that one."
But back then, he had only heard it.
Now, he felt as if he were becoming that one.
Taishang Laojun continued:
"The Great Dao has fifty, Heaven derives forty-nine."
He looked at everyone in Zixiao Palace.
"Where is the one that escaped?"
No one answered.
It wasn't that they didn't know.
It was that they didn't dare to speak.
Because this question was too grand.
So grand that only the Ancestor of Dao could answer it.
Taishang Laojun withdrew his gaze and looked at Lu Mingyuan.
"Do you know?"
Lu Mingyuan thought for a moment.
"On me?"
Taishang Laojun shook his head.
"It is not on you."
Lu Mingyuan froze.
Taishang Laojun said:
"You are it."
Suddenly, a burst of whispering echoed in Zixiao Palace.
Those whispers were like the wind, blowing gently through.
Someone said: "So that's how it is."
Someone said: "It really is him."
Someone said: "How is that possible?"
Someone said: "On what grounds?"
Taishang Laojun ignored those whispers.
He just looked at Lu Mingyuan.
"Do you know why it is you?"
Lu Mingyuan shook his head.
"I don't know."
Taishang Laojun asked:
"Do you want to know?"
Lu Mingyuan thought for a moment.
"Yes."
Taishang Laojun smiled.
"Then find it yourself."
He paused.
"Here, in Zixiao Palace, in the days to come, find it yourself."
A voice rang out.
It was the elder wearing a purple Daoist robe.
He looked at Taishang Laojun.
"Teacher, this Disciple has a question."
Taishang Laojun nodded.
"Speak."
The elder asked:
"Since the one that escaped is a variable, can it be changed?"
This question was very profound.
Can the variable itself be changed?
If it can change, is it still a variable?
If it cannot change, what is the difference between it and a fixed fate?
Everyone looked at Taishang Laojun.
Taishang Laojun did not answer.
He looked at Lu Mingyuan.
"You answer."
Lu Mingyuan was stunned.
Let him answer?
Answer this kind of question?
He looked at the elder, at Taishang Laojun, and at everyone in Zixiao Palace.
Then, he took a deep breath.
"I don't know if I can answer correctly."
Taishang Laojun said:
"There is no right or wrong in the Dao."
Lu Mingyuan nodded.
He thought for a moment.
"I think it can change."
The elder raised an eyebrow.
"Why?"
Lu Mingyuan said:
"Because I walked my way out."
He looked at the elder.
"If one is 'the one' from birth, then I am not worthy to sit here. But I wasn't. I walked out of Zhongnan Mountain step by step. From Mortal to Qi Refining, from Qi Refining to Foundation Establishment, from Foundation Establishment to Golden Core, from Golden Core to Nascent Soul, from Nascent Soul to Soul Transformation, from Soul Transformation to Body Integration, from Body Integration to Earth Immortal, from Earth Immortal to Heavenly Immortal, and from Heavenly Immortal to Golden Immortal."
He paused.
"If 'the one' does not change, then what was the purpose of me walking so much ground?"
The elder fell silent.
Lu Mingyuan continued:
"I feel that the one that escaped is not fixed. It is alive. It changes. It changes along with the person walking the path. It changes along with the path being walked."
He looked at the elder.
"Just like the seed in my Dantian. It went from a seed to a tree. The tree is still that tree, but it has grown. It has changed. Yet, it also hasn't changed."
The elder looked at him for a very, very long time.
Then, the elder smiled.
That smile was one of recognition.
"I have learned much."
He sat down.
Another voice rang out.
It was the Loose Cultivator wearing tattered Daoist robes.
He looked at Lu Mingyuan.
"Has anyone ever found the one that escaped?"
Lu Mingyuan thought for a moment.
"There should be."
The Loose Cultivator asked:
"Who?"
Lu Mingyuan said:
"Pangu."
Zixiao Palace suddenly fell silent.
Pangu.
Pangu, who split the heavens.
The Pangu who split Chaos and propped up Heaven and Earth.
The Pangu whose left eye became the sun, right eye became the moon, hair became the forests, and blood became the rivers after he died.
Lu Mingyuan said:
"Pangu's creation of the world was the one that escaped. The Great Dao has fifty, Heaven derives forty-nine, and that one that escaped allowed him to split Chaos."
He looked at the Loose Cultivator.
"But Pangu died."
The Loose Cultivator was silent.
Lu Mingyuan said:
"the one that escaped is not for making someone a saint. It is for making someone do things. After doing those things, one might live, or one might die. Pangu did them and died. But Heaven and Earth were formed."
He paused.
"I don't know if I will die. But I know I must do things."
The Loose Cultivator looked at him for a very, very long time.
Then, the Loose Cultivator suddenly laughed.
That smile was like a beam of light suddenly lighting up in Chaos.
"Good."
He said.
He only said one word.
Then he closed his eyes and spoke no more.
A monk wearing a kasaya stood up.
He looked at Lu Mingyuan.
"Benefactor, this poor monk has a question."
Lu Mingyuan nodded.
"Please speak."
The monk asked:
"Is the one that escaped within the calamity, or outside the calamity?"
This question was even harder than the previous ones.
If it is within the calamity, it is still within Karma.
If it is outside the calamity, then it has transcended.
Lu Mingyuan thought for a moment.
"Within the calamity."
The monk asked:
"Why?"
Lu Mingyuan said:
"Because I am within the calamity."
He looked at the monk.
"I am in the Dharma-Ending Kalpa. I stand before The Rift. I watch those who have died. I killed those demon soldiers. I was hunted by those demon generals. My body is still bleeding."
He paused.
"If I were outside the calamity, none of this would have happened."
The monk asked:
"Then why is it you?"
Lu Mingyuan said:
"Because the calamity needs someone. It needs someone to stand within the calamity and do things for those who are in it."
He looked at the monk.
"Just like back then, when Lady Houtu stood in the Witch-Demon Calamity and transformed into Reincarnation for those who had died."
The monk was silent.
Then, the monk pressed his palms together.
"Amitabha Buddha. Benefactor is of great kindness."
He sat down.
A scholar wearing a Confucian robe stood up.
He looked at Lu Mingyuan.
"Brother Lu, I have a question."
Lu Mingyuan nodded.
The scholar asked:
"Is the one that escaped fate?"
This question struck at the very root.
If it is fate, then everything is meaningless.
If it isn't fate, then why is it him?
Lu Mingyuan thought for a moment.
"No."
The scholar asked:
"Why?"
Lu Mingyuan said:
"Because fate is determined by Heaven. But I walked my own path."
He looked at the scholar.
"When I was at Zhongnan Mountain, I could have chosen not to descend. At The Rift, I could have chosen not to walk over. When those demon generals rushed over, I could have fled."
He paused.
"But I didn't flee. I stood there. I killed them. I almost died there."
He looked at the scholar.
"If it were fate, then what point would there be in me doing all this?"
The scholar was silent.
Lu Mingyuan said:
"I feel that the one that escaped is not fate. It is choice. It is the path chosen by the one walking it."
He looked at the scholar.
"Just like what you scholars say—My fate is determined by me, not by Heaven."
The scholar was stunned.
Then, the scholar smiled.
That smile was the kind a scholar has when finding a kindred spirit.
"What a fine 'My fate is determined by me, not by Heaven'."
He made a deep bow.
"I have learned much."
He sat down.
A person wearing white armor stood up.
That person was a military general.
His entire body exuded an aura of slaughter.
Yet those eyes were as gentle as a spring breeze.
He looked at Lu Mingyuan.
"I have a question."
Lu Mingyuan nodded.
The general asked:
"Can the one that escaped die?"
This question was heavier than death itself.
Lu Mingyuan thought for a moment.
"Yes."
The general asked:
"Then why still do it?"
Lu Mingyuan said:
"Because some things are more important than being alive."
He looked at the general.
"Those who died, all one hundred and eighty of them, they also knew they would die. But they came. They stood there. They died before The Rift."
He paused.
"When they died, there was no fear in their eyes. Only light."
The general was silent.
Lu Mingyuan said:
"I don't know if I will die. But I know that if I flee now, those who died will look down on me."
He looked at the general.
"I myself would also look down on myself."
The general looked at him for a very, very long time.
Then, the general suddenly dropped to one knee.
"I am convinced."
He stood up and walked back to his seat.
When he sat down, the light on his body was even brighter than before.
One after another, people stood up to ask.
Someone asked:
"Can the one that escaped be passed on?"
Lu Mingyuan answered:
"It can. The path can be passed on. But the act of walking it cannot."
Someone asked:
"Is the one that escaped the end?"
Lu Mingyuan answered:
"No. It is the starting point. The starting point of the walk."
Someone asked:
"What is the relationship between the one that escaped and the Dao?"
Lu Mingyuan thought for a moment and answered:
"The Dao is the sea. the one that escaped is a drop of water in the sea. But this drop of water can see the entire sea."
Someone asked:
"Then what about the heart?"
Lu Mingyuan smiled.
"The heart is the eye that looks at the sea."
Zixiao Palace suddenly fell silent.
Everyone was looking at him.
Looking at this young man who came from the Dharma-Ending Kalpa.
This young man personally named by the Ancestor of Dao.
This young man who had just broken through to the Middle Stage Golden Immortal.
This young man who stood there and answered countless questions without a single hesitation.
They looked at him and suddenly understood one thing—
This person really was the one that escaped.
It wasn't because of how strong he was.
It was because he stood there like a pillar.
Like a pillar propping up Heaven and Earth.
Like Pangu.
Taishang Laojun stood up.
He looked at everyone.
"Are the questions finished?"
No one spoke.
Taishang Laojun nodded.
Then, he looked at Lu Mingyuan.
"Have you finished answering?"
Lu Mingyuan thought for a moment.
"I have."
Taishang Laojun asked:
"Are you tired?"
Lu Mingyuan smiled.
"I am."
Taishang Laojun also smiled.
"It's good to be tired. Being tired means you truly answered."
He paused.
"Starting tomorrow, the Dao Discussion begins."
Lu Mingyuan was stunned for a moment.
"Dao Discussion?"
Taishang Laojun nodded.
"Yes. Dao Discussion. Discussing the Dao with these people. Discussing the Dao with everyone in Zixiao Palace."
He looked at Lu Mingyuan.
"What you just did was answering questions. What starts tomorrow is debating."
He paused.
"Debating your Dao. Debating 'the mind is the Xuan Shu of all laws'."
Lu Mingyuan stood there, listening to these words.
He suddenly remembered what Hongjun had said—
"They have waited nine hundred years for these words."
Nine hundred years.
Waiting for someone to come and say these words.
Waiting for someone to come and debate these words.
Waiting for someone to come and prove these words.
He looked at those people in Zixiao Palace.
Those people were also looking at him.
There were those with expectation, those with doubt, those with curiosity, and those with disdain.
But regardless of the gaze, they were all waiting.
Waiting for him to step onto the stage tomorrow.
Waiting for him to open his mouth and debate tomorrow.
Waiting for him to—prove himself tomorrow.
He took a deep breath.
"Good."
He said.
He only said one word.
But that word rang through Zixiao Palace like a clap of thunder.