Entering the Divine Prison Third Level, [Become a Saint on the Spot] and [The World as a Book] Rejoice
Chen Du did not live to see the next day.
That night, after the patrol's footsteps had completely faded away, he got up and left the stone house, walking along the corridor to the deepest part of the house.
The first-floor iron cell is located at the end of the corridor, a solitary room with stone walls on all four sides and heavy iron doors engraved with array patterns.
The iron gate was not locked, but only slightly ajar.
The jailers all knew that prisoners in the Ninth Realms did not need iron chains; the Divine Prison's own array was the most secure cage.
He pushed the door open and went inside.
The cell was small, and a dim oil lamp illuminated a figure sitting cross-legged on a stone bed.
He was a man in his fifties, thin, wearing a prison uniform whose original color was no longer discernible.
His hair was gray, but his face was peaceful, with no trace of violence or resentment in his eyes. He just sat quietly, as if meditating or lost in thought.
He didn't open his eyes to look at Chen Du, nor did he speak.
Chen Du sat down cross-legged opposite him.
After a long silence, he finally spoke, "Are you Gu Changqing?"
The man slightly raised his eyelids, glanced at him, and then lowered them again.
"You saved many lives Northern Border Plague."
Chen Du spoke.
Gu Changqing's fingers twitched slightly, as if something long forgotten had been touched, but he still didn't speak.
Chen Du did not rush to continue.
He surveyed the cell; the array patterns on the stone walls were denser than elsewhere, and the air was colder.
The great physician from the Ninth Realms, imprisoned here, neither eats nor drinks, neither makes a sound nor causes a fuss, just like Shen Xing, is disheartened.
There's nothing more to say about the Heavenly Dragon Divine Dynasty or about this world.
He thought for a moment, then took out half a pancake he had saved during the day from his pocket and placed it in front of Gu Changqing's lap.
He then took out a jug of cheap liquor that he had swiped from Old Zhou and placed it next to the pancake.
"I have nothing else to say," Chen Du stood up. "I just came to see you. Those who survived in the Northern Border deserve someone to remember you."
After saying that, he turned and walked towards the door.
As I reached the door, a very low, hoarse voice suddenly came from behind me.
What's your name?
Chen Du stopped and looked back.
Gu Changqing still didn't open his eyes, but his lips moved slightly.
Chen Du said, "Qin Dong."
The cell fell silent again. Chen Du didn't wait any longer and pushed open the door to leave.
The iron gate closed gently behind me, and the darkness in the depths of the corridor once again swallowed the dim light.
The next day, Chen Du came again.
He carried a jug of old wine he had gotten from Old Zhou and had two hot meat pies tucked into his pocket.
Gu Changqing remained seated on the stone bed, his eyes still closed.
Chen Du placed the wine and cakes in front of him, then sat down opposite him without saying a word.
The cell was so quiet that only the occasional crackling of the oil lamp could be heard.
He sat for about half an hour, then got up and left.
He came again the next day.
He brought a pot of tea and some pastries.
Gu Changqing still didn't open his eyes.
Day 3, Day 4, Day 5.
Chen Du comes every day, and each time he brings something—sometimes wine, sometimes food, and sometimes just a pot of hot water.
He didn't rush to speak, nor did he ask any questions.
Come and sit down, sit until you're done, then leave.
Old Zhou, watching this unfold, couldn't help but mutter, "Are you related to those prisoners in that jail? You're always running there."
Chen Du just smiled and said he would go check on him, worried that he might have died inside. Old Zhou shook his head and didn't ask any more questions.
On the eleventh day, when Chen Du pushed open the door, Gu Changqing finally opened his eyes.
Those eyes were calm and clear, unlike the murky or violent eyes of the other prisoners from the Ninth Realms.
He glanced at Chen Du, then at the wine jug on his lap, and remained silent for a long time before finally saying in a hoarse voice, "You don't need to come again."
Chen Du sat down opposite him and said, "Whether I come or not is my business."
Gu Changqing looked at him, her lips moved as if she wanted to say something, but then she swallowed it back.
The cell remained silent for a long time, so long that Chen Du thought he wouldn't speak again.
Then, Gu Changqing suddenly asked, "What do you want from me?"
"I don't want to think about anything," Chen Du said, "I just feel like you've been wronged here."
Gu Changqing was silent for a moment, then suddenly chuckled softly, "Injustice?"
He repeated the word, "This word is too heavy for me to carry. In my whole life, I have practiced medicine for decades and saved countless people."
I saved one, then another. I suppressed the plague in the Northern Border, but what happened afterward? Then famine struck the Northern Border, killing millions. I couldn't save them. The Heavenly Dragon Divine Dynasty spans billions of square kilometers, with a population of countless millions. How many could I, a mere doctor, save?
I saved ten thousand people, a hundred thousand people, but the Divine Dynasty is corrupt, the whole world is rotting, I can't save this world."
He raised his head, looking at Chen Du with a calm gaze that sent chills down one's spine. "You can let me go, but I won't. I'm only at the Ninth Realm. Even if you let me go, I can escape from here, but I can't escape this world. Just kill me, give me a quick death."
He said this in a very indifferent tone, as if he truly didn't care anymore.
Chen Du looked into his eyes.
There was no fear, no resentment, no desire to survive in those eyes... only a deep, quiet weariness.
He read two words in those eyes: resignation.
But he couldn't trust them.
He already knew the answer in his heart.
Gu Changqing was wronged.
"I won't kill you." Chen Du stood up, his voice calm. "You've done good deeds for decades, saving so many people. You shouldn't die in prison. If you don't want to leave, I won't force you. But remember, you can tell me anytime you want to leave."
Gu Changqing looked at him, a hint of something indescribable appearing in her eyes for the first time.
It seemed like an accident, yet also like something I couldn't understand.
Chen Du didn't say anything more, turned around, pushed open the door, and walked out.
The iron gate closed behind him, and the darkness deep in the corridor once again swallowed the iron cell.
As Chen Du walked back, he had already made up his mind.
The Heavenly Dragon Divine Dynasty is too vast, so vast that he cannot yet grasp its boundaries.
It's been around for far too long; it's rotten to the core.
The day such a colossal thing collapses will surely be a cataclysmic event.
He just needs to wait patiently. And before that, in this Divine Prison, he will gradually accumulate enough trump cards.
In the blink of an eye, several months have passed.
Chen Du stood before the stone steps leading from the first to the second floor, a thought swirling in his mind.
When will the Heavenly Dragon Divine Dynasty collapse? He had pondered this question over and over in his mind many times.
With his current Ninth Tier strength, he would be a figure of considerable importance outside, but in front of the behemoth that is the Heavenly Dragon Divine Dynasty, he is still nothing more than a grain of sand.
The Divine Dynasty spanned hundreds of millions of square kilometers and existed for tens of thousands of years, its roots deep and its branches intertwined.
Even a starved camel is bigger than a horse. Even if it's rotten to the core, it'll probably be a long time before it truly collapses.
He can't change the situation, at least not now.
What he needs is time, more trump cards, and a higher level of understanding.
Just then, Old Zhou came up from behind and patted him on the shoulder. "Let's go, the higher-ups have ordered the second and third floors to open. We're short-handed, so we all have to go down. Stay with me and don't wander off."