966 Kill At Sigh (1/2)

Ning Que smiled because he knew she was describing his feelings. It was even better that she also vocally stated her affection, so he felt happy.

He hunted the wild boar by the side of the lake and built a fire. The meat on the fire roasted and sizzled. The oil gradually dried out, and the smell of meat dispersed. They ate their fill and went to rest.

Ning Que thought of what Sangsang had said during the day and said, ”Don't compare the Academy with Buddhism in the future. You can say anything about the Academy, but not this.”

Sangsang lay on the ground that was warm due to the fire and asked, ”Why not?”

Ning Que said, ”Is the Academy that disgusting?”

Sangsang smiled and said, ”Your master injected the power of the human world into my body, and then you took me to the world to transform me into a human. The Buddha injected the three poisons of greed, anger and foolishness into my body with the same purpose. So what's the difference between them?”

Ning Que was sharpening the cutlass by the stream. When he heard this, he stopped and said after thinking, ”The difference lies in that the Buddha wants to transform you into a human in order to kill you.”

”What about the Academy?” Sangsang asked. ”Is transforming me into a human the sole purpose of the Academy? If it weren't for you, wouldn't people in the Academy try to kill me when I am weak like this?

”You said 'if',” Ning Que said. ”This proves everything. If's don't exist in the world. Since I am always beside you, the Academy won't kill you.”

Sangsang said, ”Even though I killed Ke Haoran?”

Nig Que was silent for a while and then said, ”Disregarding the time in the Chessboard, you've been in the human world for 20 years. You have only been Sangsang in these 20 years.”

Sangsang understood what he meant. She shouldn't be responsible for the events that happened before her birth. That was why the Academy didn't attribute Youngest Uncle's death to her, but to Haotian.

”What if…” Sangsang said, ”I kill your Headmaster too in the end?”

A bit annoyed, Ning Que asked, ”Can't you say something else? I said if's don't exist. Can't you leave it alone and stop looking for drama?”

Smiling, Sangsang said, ”Then I'll say something interesting. Where should we go next?”

In such a remote mountain, they could still see Buddhas. They could imagine that danger was everywhere inside the Chessboard world too, since every living being had become a Buddha and were searching for them.

It made no sense to keep going like this because they couldn't find the way out of the Chessboard even if they had gone to the end of the horizon.

”If we remove the poison in you, can you break through this Chessboard?” Ning Que asked.

Sangsang said, ”You just said there is no 'if' in the world.”

Ning Que sighed. ”Be serious.”

Sangsang said, ”If I can't, then why did we leave Chaoyang City?”

Ning Que said, ”According to Buddhism, the Buddha is the only one who could detoxify the three poisons.”

”That's a lie.”

”Buddhist sutras aren't fairytales,” Ning Que said. ”I think it does make some sense.”

Sangsang said, ”The three poisons are hard to be cleared unless one is cultivating to be enlightened.”

Ning Que wiped the water on the cutlass and walked back to her. Looking at Sangsang's eyes, he said quietly, ”Why not have a try? Can you cultivate to be enlightened?”

In his opinion, if she could be enlightened right here, the three poisons of greed, anger and foolishness could be cleared. Then those Buddhas wouldn't be a threat to her anymore.

”No.”

Ning Que asked with his brows slightly frowned, ”Why not?”

Sangsang copied his own reply, ”Disgusting.”

Ning Que felt helpless. ”Living is more important than anything else. You can do it.”

Sangsang said, ”This is the Buddha's world. I can't be enlightened.”

Ning Que thought a long while and said, ”We should still try.”

Some things must be attempted because there were no other choices. Just like the old saying in the Academy, the last choice was the best, because it was the only way.

”What do you want to try?” Sangsang asked.

Ning Que looked over the stream and into the east and said, ”I just want to try to find the Buddha.”

Sangsang said with a smile, ”And then? Can you kill him for good?

Ning Que said, ”No, but I want to see him.”

In the morning, they woke up by the side of the stream. The bonfire had turned to ash, but some warmth still lingered.

Ning Que tied Sangsang to his back, held up the black umbrella, and continued to climb towards the mountaintop. They went through the heavily foggy peak and headed east, instead of going south.

Sangsang opened her eyes, looked at the direction, but said nothing.

The dense woods were difficult to pass through. Ning Que opened a way with the cutlass. After walking for two days and one night, they finally went out of the range of mountains and came to the open grassland. He continued ahead while carrying Sangsang.

It was raining for days on the grassland. The land was soft and clear footsteps were left while he stamped on it, forming a straight line aiming towards the distant horizon.

When the footsteps on the grassland surpassed one hundred, the ground suddenly caved in. The straight line became something substantial. The dirt cracked and the grass was swallowed. It was pitch black.

The whole world was shaking; the lights wending on the darkness suddenly approached their heads. Thanks to the shield of the big black umbrella, the lights didn't fall.

The lights seemed to be suspended in the dark sky. The front end of the lights became increasingly brighter, and then exploded, spraying countless golden flowers from the sky to the ground.

Ning Que stopped and turned to the northwest. He saw gloss reflected in the dark sky. It should be the reflection of the Buddha's Lights on the ground. It was conceivable how many Buddhas were there.

Sangsang looked over and said, ”I can hear them chanting.”

”They are in fear, as is the Buddha,” Ning Que said.

Sangsang said, ”The Buddha can't know all this while in nirvana.”

Nirvana was the overlapping of the death and life. It could also simply mean sleeping. In this sense, the Buddha couldn't know they were heading east. How could he be afraid?

”Then it means the whole world is starting to be afraid.”