Chapter 1182 – Journeying to the Sacred Light Continent (1/2)
Chapter 1182 – Journeying to the Sacred Light Continent
Translated by: Hypersheep325
Edited by: Michyrr
Chen Changsheng returned to the Li Palace and once again discussed the matter of Wang Po's departure, to which Xu Yourong said something similar to Yuren's words.
”Dying for one's country…”
Wang Po had given up his plans to demand justice from the Great Zhou Dynasty, had given up on his revenge against the Chen Imperial clan. This was an incredibly difficult thing to do.
Mentally, it was no different from sacrificing oneself for the country.
Chen Changsheng strongly agreed, and then he recalled his senior brother's last words to him.
”Leaving at the ideal moment is an incredibly wonderful thing.”
Anyone could tell that these words referred to Shang Xingzhou.
Chen Changsheng would not deny this, but he also felt like those words were also aimed at him.
”I might… leave for a while.”
He somewhat hesitantly spoke.
Xu Yourong asked, ”The reason?”
There were many reasons. There was that phrase from just now, and how watching his senior brother teach his junior brother calligraphy with such harshness made him think of his master.
Or maybe it was due to the many ministers and commoners that were praising his senior brother by saying that he was becoming closer and closer to Emperor Taizong every day.
But he couldn't voice any of these reasons, as these were all just speculations without a single shred of evidence. Moreover, such speculations were truly very irresponsible.
He did not say them, but Xu Yourong knew.
She said, ”Perhaps you're overthinking it.”
”Yes.” Chen Changsheng looked at her and earnestly said, ”But before Emperor Taizong did those things, he was not necessarily the Emperor Taizong that we know, but the Prince of Qi that everyone praised. Perhaps he only killed his brothers and imprisoned his father because he was left with no other choice.”
Xu Yourong asked, ”And so?”
Chen Changsheng replied, ”I don't want to become the second Emperor Taizong, so… I want to leave.”
”If this is your reason, I do not support you, because this is an utterly passive excuse.”
Xu Yourong declared, ”Living should be a collection of active actions.”
Chen Changsheng thought this over and said, ”I myself want to leave.”
Xu Yourong asked once more, ”The reason?”
Chen Changsheng said, ”I want to know where I came from.”
Ever since the age of ten, he had lived beneath the shadow of death.
On that night, when the Tianhai Divine Empress helped him to defy the heavens and change fate, he finally no longer had to spend every day contemplating the question of death. He had the right to contemplate other questions.
Other than the questions of life and death, three questions were of paramount importance in a person's life.
'Who are you?'
'Where did you come from?'
'Where do you want to go?'
If one wanted to answer the third question, one first had to know what the answers to the first two were.
The war with the demons had not completely concluded, but he was no longer needed.
Shang Xingzhou and Black Robe said that he came from the Sacred Light Continent, so he wanted to go there and take a look.
”I accept this reason.”
Xu Yourong added, ”But don't take too long.”
Surprised, Chen Changsheng asked, ”You're not going with me?”
Xu Yourong seriously returned, ”I was born in the capital.”
……
……
Chen Changsheng returned to Xining Village. Only now did he think about his last conversation with Yourong, and then he recalled Tang Thirty-Six's assessment of her that he had made many years ago in the Plum Garden Inn: a woman that makes others speechless.
This realization comforted Chen Changsheng somewhat, but he had completely forgotten that Tang Thirty-Six had given him the exact same assessment.
For the Pope to suddenly leave was not merely irresponsible. It truly made others speechless as well.
It was late winter, so the trees growing along the stream were bare. There were no petals in the water and no books in the temple.
Chen Changsheng slept in the old temple for the night. He woke up at five o'clock on the morning of the next day. After washing his face in the stream, he began walking toward that side. The fog grew thicker and thicker as he walked over to that side, and at its thickest, the fog became clouds. In the clouds were streams, creeping vines, easily startled deer, and the indistinct figures of many mysterious beasts.
These were all familiar sights to him, so he pressed on until he reached the base of that solitary mountain.
A Unicorn appeared, its body of pure white making it seem like a divine being.
Chen Changsheng quietly met its gaze.
He knew that this Unicorn had always been waiting for him, had been waiting for him for many years.
”There's no need to absolutely be with any particular person. It's fine to be alone.”
Chen Changsheng looked at it and shook his head, saying with a faint smile, ”Go.”
The Unicorn reluctantly took its leave, turning to look back at him every ten or so steps.
Chen Changsheng calmly watched it, not turning to leave. Only after it vanished deep into the thick clouds did he continue his journey.
The solitary mountain was shrouded in clouds throughout the year. Its surface was very moist, covered in moss and flowing rivulets of water.
But to an expert of the Divine Domain, it was as easy to traverse as flat ground.
……
……
Nine days ago, the sun sank into the Cloud Grave and never appeared again.
On the tenth day, Chen Changsheng reached the summit of the solitary mountain.
There was nothing here other than the sea of clouds. It was so deserted that he felt very lonesome.
He sat on a stone at the peak, took out a fruit, and slowly and diligently ate it.
There were many things in the sword sheath, including food. Zhizhi had personally prepared great quantities of food, but he ate none of it, only a single fruit.
It was just like how he had chosen to climb to the peak instead of using any other method. Perhaps this imparted a sense of ceremony to this process that he felt was needed.
After eating the fruit, he raised his head up to the sky and realized that it was right before his eyes.
He stretched out his hand and felt it. He realized that the feel of the sky was rather decent. It was not as hard as he imagined. It was smooth and flexible, much like Yourong's face.
He closed his eyes.
Three thousand swords howled as they exited. They seemed bursting with joy as they flew around the sea of clouds. They probably knew that they would soon be off to another world.
……
……
Chen Changsheng reached the other side of the sky, falling to the ground.
It wasn't too painful, as the carpet-like green grass was very soft.
This was a grassland that had a circumference of several hundred zhang.
Chen Changsheng turned his head and saw that the just-shattered spatial crystal wall was slowly closing. The color of the sky was growing fainter and fainter until it completely vanished.
Through this, he understood that the solitary mountain on the Central Continent that soared straight into the sky was actually pointed straight at him on this side.
It turned out that these two continents were not parallel, but perpendicular to each other.
To this place, the Central Continent was a wall.
This grassland was truly very small. It only took him a moment to walk out.
Beyond the grassland was a barren desert. The white sands created a world that was naught but a white ocean.
The light of nine suns was blinding.
Chen Changsheng randomly picked a direction and began to walk.
A single step covered several li.
He quickly encountered the natives of this continent.
More and more of them.
No one asked about his background, and there was certainly no one who dared to obstruct him.
The natives gazed at him with reverence, parting like a tide, revealing that sacrificial altar.
The weather was truly very hot. That white-robed monk was sitting on the sacrificial altar, basking in the sun.
Many years ago, Chen Changsheng had accompanied the Tianhai Divine Empress's soul and met him by Xining Village's stream.
”I'm about to die, my Qi and blood exhausted, so I'm a little cold.”
The white-robed monk explained.
Chen Changsheng replied, ”This place truly is a little cold.”
It was reasonable for the monk to say that he was cold, but why did he think it was cold?
After all, those nine suns in the sky were all real.
”Have you come to take us home?”
The white-robed monk asked.