Chapter 980 (1/2)

Chapter 980: The Exchange (Part 2)

“Well… where should I begin the story? Let’s start from when I was still a mere general. I was an extremely impressive general. I fought many battles and almost never lost. Although I killed many, many people and many were fearful of me, I knew that they admired me at the same time and felt that I was extremely capable. Well, I was of the same impression, of course.”

“Yes, that’s rather impressive indeed,” Sui Xiong replied earnestly.

“However, it was only afterward that I realized it was all for naught. All my hard work, all my effort, the work I put in, the wounds I sustained, the support by my troops, the admiration of my peers, the trust of the king… it was all worth nothing! Towards enemies with an overwhelming advantage, I was still equally helpless and unable to fend them off. If it wasn’t for the fact that I ran off extremely quickly, I might even be dead by now.” The God of Light sighed deeply, and the evil expression on his face softened slightly. “While running away solo, I was chased by a large group of enemy soldiers. At that point, what I felt most was not fear or anxiety but rather… emptiness.

“I felt empty, empty to the core. I realized that all I had was a lie and that I could rely on none of my accomplishments. All I could rely on was myself and the sword I held on to!”

“Do you think the sword came out of thin air?” Sui Xiong laughed coldly. “When the raw materials and iron ore reach the smelting masters, they use fire to shape the metal. Next, the blacksmiths are the ones who turn the metal into weapons, or perhaps mages would be present to embed magic into these weapons. Without them, would you even have a sword?”

The God of Light smiled slightly and did not retaliate or quarrel further on this point.

They both felt that eventually, they would have a large battle and distinguish who lived and who died. Both of them were equally aware of this. However, at this very moment, they were simply two souls having a peaceful and quiet chat. If so, there was simply no need to argue. Both sides simply spoke their minds, and this directness was a good thing. This was especially so for the God of Light.

The more the God of Light shared, the more at peace he felt.

Afterwards, the God of Light continued his narration. He shared his life, his dreams, and the events that he had gone through. All in all, through it all, his stories all led back to a singular idea: emptiness.

“Everything in this world has an expiry date. After death, one will follow the Big Circulation’s flow and reappear or resurrect in a new way, allowing one to re-experience a new cycle… This is an endless cycle that will never cease.” The God of Light’s expression was dreamy yet absolute. “Since we live in a world with such a cycle, be it love or hate, be it victory or loss, absolutely nothing can go against the power of time. Everything comes and goes with the Big Circulation’s ebb and flow, and whatever is destined to end will eventually disappear without a trace. This Big Circulation will never, ever stop… In such a world, in such a cycle, isn’t all that I accomplished and experienced back then simply shallow and meaningless?”

Sui Xiong did not speak. As an artist, he, of course, was all too familiar with this feeling of emptiness.

He thus said, “Feeling empty and shallow is perfectly natural. However, we are gods that go against time and never, ever die. As Transcenders, we have no need to feel empty.”

“Transcenders? Even as we are gods and are effectively immortal, it does not mean we have truly transcended the Big Circulation. From the past till now, how many gods have fallen? Have they truly lived up to the virtue of immortality? Even if we speak about the gods who have lived from the past till now, even gods older than the Big Circulation, they are simply lingering souls biding their time!” the God of Light retorted in frustration. “Perhaps they are anxiously isolated in their own world or hidden in places where no one can find them. Perhaps they are slaves to the Big Circulation and are constantly working hard to ensure the continuity of the Big Circulation. Are these instances not shallow? I simply cannot understand the value of living such lives.”

Sui Xiong could not help but rebut, “In that case, for someone like me who has pioneered much progress and corrected much wrong, for someone like me who has set up rules and built up a more beautiful new generation… Do I have no value to you, too?”

“Your thinking is extremely similar to the younger me of the past. Since I could not find value in myself, I depended on others to affirm myself of my worth,” the God of Light said. “A long while after I officially became a god, I was obsessed with such a life. I led the humans to glory and was almost unstoppable in terms of victories and success. Eventually, I developed the humans until we became the strongest race in this world. In the humans’ joy, I found my own happiness. In everyone’s faith and admiration, I re-affirmed myself of my worth to prevent myself from feeling empty.”

Sui Xiong nodded. “During that period of time, you really did well. Even I have to say that I admired you then.”