175: Chapter 175 Three Heroes Battle the Demon General

By the edge of The Rift, the Devilish Qi was thicker than yesterday. Thick as ink, black as night, cold as ice. There was something within that Devilish Qi, a kind of power that drove men to despair. Lu Mingyuan stood before The Rift as Wanxiang Heaven and Earth unfolded within his heart and the Xuan-shu Path extended beneath his feet. His little tree had already grown to a foot tall, growing in the darkness, growing in the resentment, and growing in the despair. Sun Wukong stood to his left, golden cudgel resting on his shoulder, a blade of grass in his mouth. Yang Jian stood to his right, three-pointed double-edged blade propped on the ground, his Heavenly Eye half-open and half-closed. The Three Heroes reunited, standing between the darkness and the light.

"They're here," Yang Jian said.

Out of The Rift, a Demon General walked forth. He was no ordinary Demon General, but one of Taiyi Perfection. Devilish Qi clung to him, thick as ink, black as night, and heavy as a mountain. There was something in his eyes, a murderous intent that screamed, "I will kill you all." Behind him followed three thousand Demon Soldiers, every single one a Golden Immortal Rank elite.

"Lu Mingyuan, Sun Wukong, Yang Jian." The Demon General recited the three names and smiled. "Dark Emperor An told me to tell you—resistance is futile; completion is the Righteous Path. But I don't believe it. I don't believe your completion can complete me. I am at Taiyi Perfection, while among you three, there is one Taiyi Perfection, one Daluo Late Stage, and one Daluo Early Stage. Killing you would be as easy as flipping my palm."

"Then come at me." Sun Wukong spat out the grass and took the golden cudgel off his shoulder. "Old Sun hasn't had a satisfying fight in a long time."

"Sun Wukong, do not kill," Lu Mingyuan said. "Deliverance."

"I know. Deliverance. But this old boy is too arrogant; Old Sun will beat him into submission first, then deliver him."

The Demon General charged, his demonic blade slashing toward Sun Wukong. That strike was so fast it was invisible. That strike was so heavy that the very air seemed to burn. Sun Wukong did not dodge; the golden cudgel rose to meet it, and as blade and staff collided, sparks flew in all directions. Both were forced back three steps, evenly matched.

"You have some skill," the Demon General laughed. "Again!"

The demonic blade rose again, its light like lightning. Sun Wukong's golden cudgel swept out, its shadow like a mountain. The two clashed, blade and staff traded blows until the sky and earth grew dark. Devilish Qi exploded, golden light flashed, and mountain rocks shattered. The more Sun Wukong fought, the more excited he became, his golden cudgel striking with increasing weight. The more the Demon General fought, the more alarmed he became; he realized this monkey did not tire, could not be broken, and would not retreat.

"Yang Jian, help!" Sun Wukong shouted.

Yang Jian rushed forward, his three-pointed double-edged blade slashing toward the Demon General's back. The Demon General turned his blade to block, but Sun Wukong's staff slammed into his shoulder. The Demon General let out a muffled groan and retreated three steps. His shoulder was cracking, and his Devilish Qi was dissipating. Yet he did not fall, did not retreat further, and did not run. He stood there, looking at Sun Wukong and Yang Jian, and laughed.

"Two against one, that's not fair."

"In war, there is no fairness," Yang Jian said.

"Then I'll call for reinforcements too."

With a wave of the Demon General's hand, the three thousand Demon Soldiers charged. The Golden Immortal Rank elites formed a phalanx and rushed toward them. Sun Wukong and Yang Jian were entangled by the Demon Soldiers; as soon as they killed one group, another arrived, and as they cut down one squad, another took its place. The Demon General stood behind them, watching and laughing.

"Lu Mingyuan, it's your turn," the Demon General said. "Those two are occupied. Can you defeat me alone?"

"I cannot," Lu Mingyuan said. "But I will not fight you."

"Not fight me? Then what do you intend to do?"

"Deliver you."

Lu Mingyuan walked toward the Demon General, step by step. Wanxiang Heaven and Earth expanded in his heart—one zhang, two zhang, three zhang. The Xuan-shu Path extended beneath his feet—one foot, two feet, three feet. The little tree grew within his heart—one foot, two feet, three feet. A light emanated from his body, a very weak light, like that of a firefly. Yet that light would not be extinguished; no matter how strong the wind, it would not go out; no matter how heavy the Devilish Qi, it would not go out; no matter how deep the despair, it would not go out.

"Stay back!" the Demon General roared. He raised his demonic blade and slashed at Lu Mingyuan. Lu Mingyuan did not dodge; he reached out and caught the blade. Not with his hand, but with his Dao. Wanxiang True Qi surged from his palm, flowing into the demonic blade and into the Demon General's body.

The Demon General felt his body changing. The Devilish Qi was dissipating, the resentment was dissolving, and the deficiency was being completed. He was afraid—not of death, but of that change. That change from deficiency to wholeness, from darkness to light, from hatred to love.

"No... no..."

"Do not be afraid," Lu Mingyuan said. "I am not killing you, but completing you. I am not destroying you, but delivering you."

In the Demon General's eyes, the black Devilish Qi receded, revealing a pair of ordinary eyes. In those eyes, there was no hatred, no resentment, and no killing intent. There was only one thing—relief.

"Thank you," the Demon General said. His voice was very faint, like a breeze. Then he dissolved. He did not turn into black smoke, but into light. That light was very weak, like a firefly. Yet that light would not be extinguished. The light rose, flying into the sky and becoming a star.

The Demon General had dissolved, and the Demon Soldiers were stunned. Their commander was gone, delivered, transformed into light and a star. They did not know what to do—should they fight, run, or surrender?

"Do you wish for it as well?" Lu Mingyuan asked.

The Demon Soldiers were silent for a moment, then nodded. Lu Mingyuan smiled. He reached out his hand, and Wanxiang True Qi surged from his palm toward the three thousand Demon Soldiers. That True Qi was like a river, flowing into the soldiers. Those Demon Soldiers did not die; they dissolved. They turned into wisps of green smoke, dissipating into the world. It was not destruction, but transformation. Not confrontation, but deliverance. One, ten, a hundred, a thousand. All three thousand Demon Soldiers were delivered, turning into three thousand beams of light that flew into the sky and became three thousand stars.

Sun Wukong and Yang Jian stood there, looking at those lights, those stars, and those lives that had changed from demons to light, from deficiency to wholeness, and from hatred to love. Something shattered in their eyes—not tears, but the shock of realizing, "So this is Deliverance."

"This is Deliverance?" Sun Wukong asked.

"This is Deliverance," Lu Mingyuan said. "Not through power, but through the heart. Not through killing, but through love. Not through battle, but through compassion."

"Old Sun has fought for half his life and has never seen such a way of fighting," Sun Wukong said. "Without killing a single person, you delivered three thousand. Without taking a single life, you completed three thousand. Without fighting a single battle, you won against three thousand."

"This is not winning," Lu Mingyuan said. "This is completion. It is not defeating an enemy, but healing a patient. It is not destroying an opponent, but filling a void. It is not winning a war, but ending one."

Yang Jian looked at him for a long time. "The things you said in Zixiao Palace, I didn't quite understand then, but now I seem to understand a little. All laws share the same source, and no Dao is superior to another. The Heart as the Mysterious Pivot, and all laws naturally return. It's not just talk; it can truly be done."

"It can be done," Lu Mingyuan said. "It is just slow. Delivering one only adds one star. For every one I complete, An creates ten more. When will it ever be finished? I do not know. But I know that I must keep walking. Walking until the day everything is completed."

---

By the edge of The Rift, the three men stood. Lu Mingyuan, Sun Wukong, and Yang Jian. They looked at that Rift, at the Devilish Qi surging from it, and at the beings struggling within that Devilish Qi.

"Lu Mingyuan, Old Sun has a question," Sun Wukong said.

"What question?"

"You've delivered so many Demon Soldiers and Demon Generals, yet The Rift remains, the Devilish Qi remains, and An remains. For every one you deliver, An creates ten more. For every one you complete, An creates a hundred more. When will it ever be finished?"

Lu Mingyuan fell silent. He did not know. He truly did not know. He had delivered Shi Xin, and a star was added to the sky. But An then created Bone-Eroding, and Bone-Eroding created another Shi Xin, and that Shi Xin created an even stronger Demon General. He delivered three thousand Demon Soldiers, and three thousand stars were added to the sky. But An then created thirty thousand Demon Soldiers, and The Rift grew three sizes larger. For every one he completed, An created ten. For every ten he completed, An created a hundred. For every hundred he completed, An created a thousand. It could not be finished. Deliverance could not be exhausted. Transformation could not be ended.

"I do not know," Lu Mingyuan said. "But I know that I must keep walking. Walking until the day everything is completed."

"But what if it can never be finished?" Yang Jian asked. "What if the Dharma Ending Age never passes? What if An is always there?"

"Then one must still keep walking. Walking is not for the sake of arriving. Walking is for the sake of walking itself. Completion is not for the sake of finishing. Completion is for the sake of completion itself. Standing is not for the sake of holding one's ground. Standing is for the sake of standing itself."

Sun Wukong and Yang Jian looked at him, at this scholar who had come out of Heyin City, at this man who had out-argued the Sages in Zixiao Palace, and at this man who stood his ground at the South Heaven Gate without retreating. There was no answer in his eyes, but there was no fear either. There was only one thing—what ought to be.

"Fine," Sun Wukong said. "Then Old Sun will walk with you. Walk until the day I can walk no more."

"I will also accompany you," Yang Jian said. "Stand until the day I can stand no more."

The three men stood by the edge of The Rift. They stood like three trees rooted there. The wind could not move them, the rain could not break them, and the lightning could not shatter them. It was not because they were strong, but because it was what they ought to do. It was not because they were unafraid, but because they were willing. It was not because they could hold their ground, but because standing itself was the path.

---

Buzhou Mountain Ruins, night. The three men sat on the mountain peak, looking at the stars in the sky. There were three thousand more stars than yesterday, but they were still very few, only a few thousand in total. Yet they were there, shining in the darkness, flashing in the despair, and living in the Dharma Ending Age.

"Lu Mingyuan, Old Sun learned one thing today," Sun Wukong said.

"What thing?"

"Deliverance is harder than killing. Killing only requires strength. Deliverance requires the heart. Old Sun has strength, but Old Sun's heart is not big enough. Delivering one or two is fine, but delivering three thousand, Old Sun cannot do it."

"But you also delivered a few today."

"That was from watching you deliver them and learning as I went. But if Old Sun were to deliver them himself, it still wouldn't work. My heart cannot open, my love cannot be released, and my compassion cannot be given out."

"Take it slow," Lu Mingyuan said. "The heart cannot be opened in a single day. The more you walk, the larger the heart becomes. The more you stand, the broader the heart becomes. The more you protect, the softer the heart becomes. The more you deliver, the more the heart opens."

Sun Wukong nodded. "Good. Old Sun will take it slow."

Yang Jian looked at those stars and remained silent for a long time. "Lu Mingyuan, I also have a question."

"What question?"

"You've delivered so many Demon Soldiers and Demon Generals, but do you know why An creates so many Demon Soldiers? Why is he making The Rift larger and larger? Why is he bringing the Dharma Ending Age closer and closer?"

Lu Mingyuan was stunned. He had never thought about this question. He only knew that An was deficiency, a projection of the Heavenly Dao's missing parts, and a collection of the resentment from countless kalpas. But he did not know why An did these things. Why invade the Three Realms? Why destroy all living beings? Why let the Dharma Ending Age descend?

"I do not know," Lu Mingyuan said.

"Bai Ze might know," Yang Jian said. "It is an ancient Divine Beast; it knows many things that we do not."

"Tomorrow I will go and ask it."

The three men sat on the mountain peak. They sat there, looking at the stars in the sky, looking at those lights formed by completed Souls. That light was very weak, like a firefly. Yet that light would not be extinguished; no matter how strong the wind, it would not go out; no matter how deep the darkness, it would not go out; no matter how heavy the despair, it would not go out.

That light is called hope. That light is called love. That light is called Lu Mingyuan. That light is called Sun Wukong. That light is called Yang Jian. That light is called the Three Heroes. That light is called the Mortal Realm.