165: Chapter 165 The Southern Heavenly Gate (Part Two)

Chapter One Hundred and Sixty-Five: South Heaven Gate (Part 2)

Lu Mingyuan felt himself walking in a patch of darkness. It wasn't the kind of darkness outside the South Heaven Gate, but another kind. That darkness was very quiet, so quiet that he could hear his own heartbeat. That darkness was very gentle, as gentle as a mother's embrace. That darkness was very familiar, as familiar as the Chaos before birth.

He walked, not knowing how long he had been walking. A day? A year? Or ten thousand years? He didn't know. In the darkness, there was no time, no space, and no direction. There was only walking. Walking continuously. He didn't know why he was walking, nor did he know where he was going. He just walked. Just as he had always done—he walked.

As he walked, he saw a light ahead. It wasn't the light of Wanxiang True Qi, nor the light of the South Heaven Gate. That light was very faint, as faint as a candle flame about to go out. But there were voices within that light. The voices were very far away, as if coming from another world. Yet the voices were very clear, as if they were right by his ear.

"Lu Mingyuan... Lu Mingyuan... wake up..."

Someone was calling him. Who? He listened to that voice, and as he listened, he recognized it. It was Yang Jian. Yang Jian was calling him. His voice was hoarse, carrying the exhaustion of not having slept for three days and three nights.

He walked toward the direction of that voice. Toward the direction of Yang Jian, toward the direction of the South Heaven Gate, and toward the direction of where he ought to stand. The darkness receded behind him, and light unfolded before him. He saw the light, saw the South Heaven Gate, saw the Lingxiao Treasure Hall, and saw his own body lying on the ground. His body was in a terrible state; his chest had collapsed, his bones were broken, and blood was still seeping out. But his body was still breathing, still beating, and still alive.

He stepped into his own body. It was like walking into a house that hadn't been lived in for a long time. The house was a mess; the Meridians were broken, the Dantian was cracked, and half of the Wanxiang Heaven and Earth had collapsed. But the foundation of the house was still there, and the pillars remained. He stood within that house, standing upon the ruins of the collapsed Wanxiang Heaven and Earth, and began to repair. He used Wanxiang True Qi to repair the Meridians and Xuanshu Dao Principles to repair the Dantian. Inch by inch, it was very slow. But he was doing it, doing what ought to be done.

---

Outside the South Heaven Gate, the sounds of battle cries shook the heavens.

Lu Mingyuan heard those sounds during his repairs. They weren't the roars of demon soldiers, but human voices. It was Yang Jian's roar, Nezha's cry of pain, Li Jing's muffled groan, and Taibai Jinxing's exclamation of alarm. Hearing those voices, his heart tightened. He wanted to open his eyes, but he couldn't yet. The Meridians weren't fixed, the Dantian wasn't fully patched, and the Wanxiang Heaven and Earth hadn't been set upright. He could only continue repairing, repairing even faster.

"Yang Jian!" Nezha's voice shouted, carrying a sob.

Lu Mingyuan's hand trembled. He increased his speed; one meridian was reconnected, then two, then three. The Dantian was patched by one inch, then two, then three. One corner of the Wanxiang Heaven and Earth was set upright, then two, then three.

"Don't... don't go over there..." Nezha's voice was shaking.

Lu Mingyuan gritted his teeth, and the last meridian was reconnected. The last inch of the Dantian was patched. The last wall was set upright. He opened his eyes.

---

In front of the Lingxiao Treasure Hall's doors, Shi Xin was walking toward the Heavenly Emperor.

He was surrounded by Devilish Qi, and every step he took caused the ground to crack. Yang Jian was buried in the ruins, unable to move. Nezha lay prone on the ground, his leg broken. Li Jing knelt in the corner, his pagoda shattered. Taibai Jinxing had collapsed by the door, his Whisk broken. Among the gods, some were injured and some had fallen; no one could stand up.

"Heavenly Emperor," Shi Xin stood before the door, smiling. "Your gods are all dead. Your soldiers are all wiped out. Your gate is about to break."

"It hasn't broken yet," the Heavenly Emperor sat upon the Cloud Platform, his voice very calm.

"It will break soon."

Shi Xin raised his fist. There was Devilish Qi upon his fist, so thick it was like ink and as black as night. If that punch were to land, the doors of the Lingxiao Treasure Hall would break. Once the doors broke, the Heavenly Court would be gone.

The fist fell.

A hand caught that fist.

That hand was very small, so thin it seemed only bone remained, and as white as paper. But that hand caught that fist. It caught the full-strength strike of a Taiyi Golden Immortal Perfection.

Shi Xin was stunned. He looked at that hand, and following the arm, he saw a person. That person stood before the Lingxiao Treasure Hall, before the Heavenly Emperor, and before that door. That person was covered in blood, his chest was still collapsed, his bones were still broken, and his wounds were still seeping blood. But that person was standing. Using that hand that caught the fist, he stood.

"Lu Mingyuan?" Shi Xin recognized him. "Weren't you unconscious?"

"I'm awake," Lu Mingyuan said. His voice was very weak, as weak as the wind. But there was something in that wind, a determination that once he woke up, he didn't intend to fall again.

"So what if you're awake? You are Mid-stage Daluo, and I am Taiyi Perfection. You are heavily injured and unhealed, while I am at full strength. What do you have to block me?"

"I have what I ought to have."

Shi Xin laughed. "What you ought to have? You can't even stand steady, so what will you use to block me?"

"If I can't stand steady, I must still stand. If I can't block, I must still block."

Lu Mingyuan released his hand and took a step back. He stood before the door, just standing. The Wanxiang Heaven and Earth unfolded in his heart; although only half-repaired, that half was enough. The Xuan-shu Path extended beneath his feet; although only three inches, those three inches were enough to stand on.

"Your brother Bone-Eroding died by my hand," Lu Mingyuan said. "Do you know how he died?"

Shi Xin's smile vanished. "How did he die?"

"He thought he was very strong, so strong that no one could kill him. But he forgot that strength and weakness are not measured by cultivation. They are measured by the Dao. His Dao was to kill, to destroy, and to devour. My Dao is to guard, to protect, and to mend. When his Dao met my Dao, it was like ice meeting fire, like darkness meeting light. He melted. He wasn't killed by me; he was killed by his own deficiency."

Shi Xin looked at Lu Mingyuan, looking at that blood-covered person who could barely stand. Fear appeared in his eyes. It wasn't fear of Lu Mingyuan's power, but fear of his Dao. A Dao that was not about confrontation, but transformation; not about destruction, but salvation.

"I don't believe it," Shi Xin said. "I don't believe your Dao can restrain me. I am Taiyi Perfection, and you are only Mid-stage Daluo. Killing you is as easy as flipping my palm."

"Then come."

Shi Xin charged, his fist smashing toward Lu Mingyuan's head. That punch was so fast it was invisible. That punch was so heavy that the air itself seemed to burn.

Lu Mingyuan didn't dodge. He reached out his hand, and his palm caught that fist. He didn't catch it with his hand, but with his Dao. Upon his palm was Wanxiang True Qi and Xuanshu Dao Principles. Those things condensed together, forming a shield. That shield was very thin, as thin as paper. But that shield was very resilient, as resilient as silk.

Shi Xin's fist stopped before Lu Mingyuan's palm, unable to advance even an inch.

"Impossible!" Shi Xin roared. His other fist smashed forward as well. Lu Mingyuan's other hand caught it too. Both fists were caught, both were blocked, and neither could advance.

"I told you," Lu Mingyuan said. "Strength and weakness are not measured by cultivation. They are measured by the Dao."

He pushed with both hands, and Shi Xin retreated three steps. Three steps. A Taiyi Golden Immortal Perfection was pushed back three steps by a heavily injured Mid-stage Daluo.

Shi Xin stood there, looking at Lu Mingyuan with fear in his eyes. "Just who are you?"

"A person who walks. A person who stands when he ought to stand and guards when he ought to guard."

Shi Xin looked at him for a long time. Then he laughed. "You aren't a person. You are the Dao. You are that kind of 'Should' Dao. Your cultivation isn't high, but your Dao is very high. So high that I cannot reach it."

"Do you still want to fight?"

"I'll fight," Shi Xin said. "Even if I can't win, I must fight. Just as you said, it's not because I can win that I fight. It's because I should fight that I fight."

Shi Xin charged, and his fist smashed down again. Lu Mingyuan caught it and pushed him away. He charged again, was caught again, and pushed away again. Ten times, twenty times, thirty times. Shi Xin's fists grew heavier, but Lu Mingyuan's shield grew firmer. Shi Xin's speed grew faster, but Lu Mingyuan's reactions grew steadier.

Forty times, fifty times, sixty times. Shi Xin was tired, but Lu Mingyuan was not. It wasn't that his body wasn't tired, but that his heart wasn't tired. His heart was the Xuan Shu, the pivot of all laws. When the pivot does not move, all laws naturally return to it.

"Enough," Lu Mingyuan said. He brought his hands together, clamping Shi Xin's two fists. Wanxiang True Qi surged from his palms, pouring into Shi Xin's body. Within that True Qi was the Noble Spirit of Confucianism, the Quietude and Non-action of Taoism, the Compassionate Wisdom of Buddhism, and the fortitude and decisiveness of a Martial Artist. Those things poured into Shi Xin's Devilish Qi; it wasn't confrontation, but transformation. It wasn't destruction, but salvation.

Shi Xin felt his body changing. The Devilish Qi was dissipating, and the resentment was being resolved. He became afraid. "No... don't..."

"Don't be afraid. I am not killing you, but mending you. I am not destroying you, but saving you."

The Wanxiang True Qi continued to pour into Shi Xin's body. In Shi Xin's eyes, the black Devilish Qi receded, revealing a pair of ordinary eyes. There was no hate, no resentment, and no killing in those eyes. There was only one thing—relief.

"Thank you," Shi Xin said. His voice was very light, as light as the wind. Then he dissolved. He didn't turn into green smoke, but into light. That light was very weak, as weak as a firefly. But that light did not go out. That light flew up, into the Lingxiao Treasure Hall, and into the hand of the Heavenly Emperor.

---

Outside the South Heaven Gate, the Demon Tide stopped.

Those demon soldiers and generals looked at the light Shi Xin had become, and they were all stunned. In their eyes, there was something new. It wasn't fear, but a longing. A longing for that feeling of being made whole.

"You want it too?" Lu Mingyuan asked.

The demon soldiers and generals were silent for a moment, then they nodded. Lu Mingyuan smiled. He reached out his hand, and Wanxiang True Qi surged from his palm, flowing toward the Demon Tide outside the South Heaven Gate. That True Qi was like a river, flowing into the Demon Tide. The demon soldiers and generals were submerged by that river water; they weren't being killed, but were being made whole. Their Devilish Qi dissipated, and their resentment was resolved. One by one, they turned into light and flew up, entering the Lingxiao Treasure Hall.

In the Heavenly Emperor's hand, the light became more and more, and grew brighter and brighter. That light was very warm, as warm as a spring breeze.

Outside the South Heaven Gate, it was empty. There were no demon soldiers, no demon generals, and no darkness. There was only light.

Lu Mingyuan stood before the door, just standing. There was a smile on his face, a smile that was very light, as light as the wind. Then his legs went weak, and his body fell forward. Yang Jian crawled out from the ruins and caught him.

"Don't die," Yang Jian's voice was shaking.

"I won't die," Lu Mingyuan said. "There are still things left to do. There is still a heaven to mend."

He raised his head and looked outside the South Heaven Gate. In the darkness, the projection of the Dark Heavenly Emperor appeared. That projection covered half the sky and blocked out all the light. That projection was laughing, and the laughter was very light, but there was something in that lightness, a power that made one feel despair.

"Interesting. Truly interesting. That such a person and such a Dao still exist within the Dharma-Ending Kalpa. Unfortunately, you do not understand. Confrontation only makes me stronger. Combat only makes me mightier. The more you fight, the stronger I become. The more you resist, the closer I am to victory."

That laughter echoed outside the South Heaven Gate. Hearing that laughter, some of the gods began to tremble, and some began to weep. But they did not retreat. Not a single one retreated. They stood there, just standing.

Lu Mingyuan looked at that projection and smiled. "If confrontation is useless, then I shall mend. If combat is useless, then I shall save. Your Dao is deficiency, and my Dao is mending. The stronger you are, the more I must mend. Not because I can win, but because it is what should be done."

The projection of the Dark Heavenly Emperor fell silent. He looked at Lu Mingyuan, looked at those calm eyes, and looked at that broken body. He was silent for a long time, and then he laughed.

"Fine. Then I shall wait. The Dharma-Ending Kalpa is still long."

The projection disappeared.

Lu Mingyuan leaned against Yang Jian, looking at the empty South Heaven Gate, and smiled. "It is still long. Then we shall mend it slowly. Mend a little every day, a little every year. Eventually, it will be finished."