Su Yang gave Tongtian a slight nod, then turned to Hongjun, his voice low and slow. "Time flies like an arrow; a thousand years pass in the snap of a finger. Beneath the vast cosmos, through the endless years, I find myself wondering what mark this body of mine ought to leave between heaven and earth. The wind is cold at lofty heights. Sitting idle day after day, I do not even know what else there is left to do—only using the great tribulations of heaven and earth as a backdrop, watching flowers flash past on horseback, leaning on the rail to admire the moon, merely to while away the loneliness in my chest. What I miss most are the days when primordial chaos had just opened, when I stood side by side with Pangu to discuss the Dao and test our divine abilities... But now Pangu is gone. Survey all of chaos, and there is no longer anyone worth my giving my all to in an unrestrained battle. On this long, long road, how am I to trudge onward alone?"
Silence and bewilderment hung through the great hall like a thin mist, lingering and impossible to dispel.
After hearing him out, Hongjun's corner of his mouth lifted, revealing a helpless faint smile. "This humble cultivator truly finds it difficult to lend a hand with the matter troubling you now, fellow cultivator. Why not leave your place of quiet cultivation for a time and make a trip through the mortal world—temper your heart with the smoke and flame of daily life, hone your nature with its sorrows and joys. Though mortals live brief lives, they are like morning dew reflecting rainbows, glittering in a thousand hues. Surely that is better than sitting dryly upon a meditation cushion every day, bitterly