Restraint Appears (Continued)

Fu Yuan sat at Guilt Cliff in the back mountain, his expression twisted with fury.

"How about it? Will you accept my power? Then the whole world will be at your mercy."

"Are you Honkai?"

"Does that matter? What matters is that I can spare you from having to think about such questions."

"Get lost!"

Fu Yuan stood within his own Mind Space, listening to that voice from who knew where, irritation coloring his tone.

"If only one of all living beings and Senior Sister could survive, who would you choose?"

The next instant, the Mind Space, which had been as clear and still as water, turned back into the cave from before.

"Then what are you going to choose?"

"What does it have to do with you?!"

That voice remained calm and ethereal, as though it were discussing something utterly insignificant.

Seeing this scene brought up again, Fu Yuan's expression became completely ferocious. Along with his rage, the Mind Space began to grow unstable.

"But you'll have to face it sooner or later, won't you?"

"So wouldn't it be better to accept my power?"

That voice continued tempting Fu Yuan. There was nothing sophisticated about it; it simply kept forcing him to confront that question.

Soon, the scene changed. The cave became a battlefield, and at its center, Senior Sister stood alone and isolated.

Facing her was an army! An army made up of ordinary people.

The war soon began. It was a one-sided slaughter, a massacre of ordinary people by a superhuman.

"What would you do?"

Fu Yuan stood silently at the edge of the battlefield. Every time he tried to act, he stopped himself.

Let it be! It'll be over soon, very soon.

With that thought, Fu Yuan shut his eyes completely. Then, when he opened them again—

The scene he had expected did not appear. Senior Sister stood there limply, weapon after weapon piercing through her body.

"No, no, it shouldn't be like this."

Fu Yuan's expression turned frantic. It should not have been like this. How could Senior Sister lose?

He acted, killing those ordinary people. But just as he was about to embrace Senior Sister, he returned to where he had started.

The previous battle had been like an illusion. Senior Sister and the army had not yet moved.

"What would you do?"

It was as though everything had been replayed exactly, even the tone unchanged.

The only difference was that this time, Fu Yuan acted in advance, and the illusion shattered.

It was once again the Mind Space, as clear and still as water, along with that irritating voice.

"If you could only choose one between all living beings and Senior Sister, who would you choose?"

"I... choose Senior Sister."

His tone suddenly became resolute. For the first time, Fu Yuan answered the question head-on, though not in front of Senior Sister.

Then the scene changed again. Unlike the last one, this was a scene he had never seen before.

In the scene, Senior Sister was giving instructions to an elder beside her. Fu Yuan stepped forward, wanting to hear what they were saying.

"Release news of my whereabouts."

Then the scene shifted once more. It was still Senior Sister, but this time, she was alone at a table, writing and sketching.

"How to shatter Junior Brother's Dao Heart!"

"After seeing this, would you still choose Senior Sister?"

"I, I... You're lying to me!"

Fu Yuan erupted in fury, and the Mind Space was instantly surrounded by countless blades.

Unexpectedly, a figure appeared before him this time.

Golden eyes, snow-white hair, pale skin—an incomparably bewitching sight.

A short robe as white as snow covered the figure's body. Beneath the fair neck, snowy skin was exposed, delicate collarbones adorning it. At the waist lay a Golden Chain. Only upon closer inspection could one see that it was formed from countless tiny chains interwoven together, wrapping around the waist and neck while revealing a slender figure.

It looked as though nothing was worn below. Partly covered by the short upper robe, two slender, snow-white legs were exposed. Below them were small jade-like feet, their bones distinctly defined, resting there casually.

Soon, countless blades pierced through his body, yet none struck him, as though the person did not exist at all.

"You're Honkai?"

Seeing that his attacks were ineffective, Fu Yuan temporarily stopped attacking and watched the person before him warily.

"I am not Honkai."

"As for me! I'm merely a mirror."

The person before him suddenly smiled strangely, and his figure began flattening like a sheet of paper.

Then his body widened and gradually became crystalline, finally turning into a pool of still water reflecting Fu Yuan's current appearance.

That voice appeared again, but it no longer carried its previous coldness.

"Constraint, welcome!"

I Forgive You!

Fu Yuan looked at his current appearance, feeling somewhat helpless.

After realizing he had fallen into Demonic Possession, his former Dao Heart seemed like nothing more than a joke.

And once he thought of that, the last shred of perseverance within him vanished completely.

Still Water, Dustless, Clear Mirror, Taixu—the realms others might spend an entire lifetime failing to reach were completely destroyed in that moment.

It was as though his heart had been veiled in a layer of Black Mist, filled with despair and helplessness.

Honkai erupted.

To Fu Hua, who was meditating, it was so sudden that she stared toward the back mountain in disbelief.

This was undoubtedly a bolt from the blue. Yet after remaining silent for only a moment, she picked up her sword and walked out of her room.

Taixu Sect Rule: Those who fall into Demonic Possession shall be killed without mercy!

This was Taixu Mountain's sole sect rule, and also the one rule Fu Hua would never allow anyone to violate. It carried the weight of tens of thousands of years. Though it was crushing enough to make one unable to breathe, she had never broken it... just as she would not this time.

"What's going on?!" Su Mei rushed out of her room anxiously and looked toward the back mountain. What was with this concentration of Honkai energy?!

Even when Demon Beasts had gathered before, Honkai energy had never been this dense. At this concentration, if she were at the center, she probably would not last long either.

Could it be... No, impossible. How could a Flawless Dao Heart fall into Demonic Possession?

Thinking this, she shook her head. Such a thing was impossible. After all, her plan had only reached its first step; even she had never considered the possibility of Junior Brother falling into Demonic Possession.

"Master, this is the back mountain. Did something happen to Junior Disciple Brother?"

Chao Yu, the eldest Senior Sister, looked at her master's grave expression. She too could sense the dense Honkai energy and could not help worrying.

"...A Herrscher." Faced with her eldest disciple's question, Fu Hua struggled visibly before finally voicing the most likely possibility.

Once those words were spoken, all three present fell silent. Even Su Mei, who was always in control, did not know what to say. A Herrscher—the enemy of humanity, Honkai's greatest creation.

"Then... what should we do?" Su Mei asked in a hoarse voice. She truly had never expected this situation.

"...Those who fall into Demonic Possession shall be killed without mercy." Fu Hua closed her eyes and uttered those words.

"A Yuan has fallen into Demonic Possession?" Fu Yuan helplessly sensed the changes in the air, as well as the changes within himself.

"I've fallen into Demonic Possession... Ha, haha, hahahaha!" Fu Yuan suddenly found it deeply ironic. He had fallen into Demonic Possession—the person once considered least likely to do so had fallen into Demonic Possession!

"Hahaha... haha..."

Fu Yuan suddenly became agitated and swung the sword in his hand forward with all his strength. Yet the weapon that had once moved as easily as an extension of his arm did not release its usual sharp sword light. Instead, it felt unfamiliar in every way.

Fu Yuan silently looked at the sword before him, suddenly feeling that everything today was nothing more than a joke.

He threw down the weapon in his hand, as if recalling something.

"That's right. My sword heart has already shattered, and the Five Aggregates must be ruined too!"

The instant he completely let go of the sword, countless Chain Spears emerged from behind him. They moved as naturally as his own limbs, as though they were part of him, forming a stark contrast to the sword from before.

Then they bombarded the cliff before him with full force. Under the unceasing attacks, the once-unscalable cliff was completely reduced to rubble that rolled downward.

Fu Yuan felt his current power and became somewhat lost. Then he dropped to his knees and clutched his head.

He slammed it against the ground again and again. After a long time, when the pain had become nearly unbearable—

Fu Yuan seemed to suddenly remember something. He crawled forward several steps, feeling around for the sword he had thrown aside.

Feeling the familiar weight in his hand, Fu Yuan inexplicably felt a little more at ease.

He slowly stroked the patterns on the sword, his eyes filled with struggle.

At last, his trembling arm raised the sword to his throat. Just one more inch, and it would all be over. Just one inch, one inch...

After a long while, Fu Yuan desperately threw the sword in his hand to the ground, tears streaming down uncontrollably.

He did not dare! He did not dare!

He had died once. He knew what death felt like—the loneliness, the despair, the utter absence of hope. Everything would leave him, and his consciousness would be stretched infinitely within that single second.

Death—he understood it better than anyone!

He did not dare!

"Coward! Damn it!"

Fu Yuan hammered the ground with his fists again and again until his hands were covered in blood, exposing stark white bone.

Fu Yuan suddenly stopped and stared at the ground, which was slowly being corroded. Blood mixed with tears, forming a shallow puddle.

Fu Yuan looked at his current reflection within it and suddenly felt utterly powerless.

He lay down on the rubble-covered ground, his hollow eyes staring at the sky, at a sky without a single bird.

Then he slowly curled up, helplessly hugging his knees as tears continued flowing from the corners of his eyes.

Fu Yuan resolutely wiped away his tears, not caring whether his hands were dirty or not.

"Taixu Sect Rule: Those who fall into Demonic Possession shall be killed without mercy!"

Fu Yuan suddenly recited the words he had been required to memorize firmly on the first day he had been taken in.

But he truly did not dare!

In the end, Fu Yuan sealed all his senses and leaned against the corner of the wall, preparing to await his fate.

Fu Hua sensed the Honkai energy in the air growing increasingly dense, and sudden desolation filled her heart. Is this my destiny?

Cang Xuan, Dan Zhu, Xuanyuan, and A Yuan! Destiny—what an irony!

Thinking this, Fu Hua turned to glance at the two disciples still following behind her. Seeing them struggle bitterly against the Honkai, she did not tell them to leave again.

In Fu Hua's perception, this Honkai outbreak was no weaker than any of those from the Previous Era. It truly was too difficult for them.

It was fine if they saw him one last time.

Then she silently led the way ahead, only increasing the output of Void Sword Qi to disperse more Honkai energy into the surroundings.

As the group walked toward the back mountain and saw the mountain peak that had once stood there completely gone, Fu Hua's gaze suddenly turned grave.

She was a warrior, a warrior bearing the hopes of who knew how many people.

Anyone present could be weak. Only she could not.