Within Wuzhuang Temple, a gentle breeze drifted by.
Beneath the Ginseng Fruit Tree, Zhen Yuanzi and Hong Yun sat facing each other in silence, an indescribable heaviness permeating the air.
After listening to the Dao at Zixiao Palace, Hong Yun had not returned to Huoyun Cave. Instead, he had followed Zhen Yuanzi back to Wuzhuang Temple.
At this moment, his thoughts were in turmoil, his mind a complete mess.
That Hongmeng Purple Qi lay deep within his Primordial Spirit, radiating an enticing aura of the Great Dao. It was the foundation for becoming a Saint, the ultimate opportunity countless mighty figures in the Primordial Wilderness dreamed of obtaining.
Yet whenever he thought of Kunpeng's gaze, which seemed ready to swallow him alive, Hong Yun found himself unable to sit or stand at ease.
Should he give it away?
Or should he keep it?
That was the question.
Giving it away meant completely abandoning the Saint position within his grasp and handing this heaven-defying opportunity to someone else.
Who could accept that?
Who could bear to?
That was the Saint position! Who in the Primordial Wilderness did not yearn for it?
Hong Yun asked himself honestly. He could not bear to part with it. He really could not bear to!
But if he refused to give it away...
Then the Karma he had formed with Kunpeng would never be resolved.
The grudge of blocking someone's path to the Dao meant they would fight to the death!
Hong Yun understood Kunpeng's temperament to some extent. He was absolutely the sort who took revenge for the slightest grievance, ruthless and merciless.
Once Kunpeng set his sights on him, he would probably never know peace again.
Zhen Yuanzi lifted his teacup, took a small sip, and slowly set it down.
He watched the constantly shifting expressions on Hong Yun's face, neither urging him nor trying to persuade him.
He understood what Hong Yun was feeling.
Hongmeng Purple Qi, the foundation for becoming a Saint—the weight of this thing was simply too great.
If any other living being in the Primordial Wilderness suddenly obtained such a supreme treasure, how could they give it up so easily?
Even knowing that a mountain of blades and sea of flames lay ahead, they would probably still fight for it at all costs.
The fact that Hong Yun had struggled for this long was already extraordinarily rare.
Hong Yun tightly closed his eyes, yet the scene of his conversation with Wu Ming in Pangu Hall involuntarily surfaced in his mind.
At that time, he had not yet obtained the Hongmeng Purple Qi. He had only been troubled by the matter of giving up his seat.
Wu Ming's words now echoed exceptionally clearly in his ears.
"After the Third Preaching, I will naturally tell you how to resolve it. I only hope that when the time comes, Fellow Daoist, you will not be unwilling to part with it."
"Absolutely not! So long as I can settle this Karma with Fellow Daoist Kunpeng, no matter how great the price, I will pay it willingly!"
"I only hope that your words today were not spoken on impulse. When the time comes... do not regret it because the price is too great and refuse to part with it."
"Rest assured, Fellow Daoist Wu Ming! So long as I can settle this Karma with Fellow Daoist Kunpeng, even if I must give up everything I own, or even this life of mine, Hong Yun will not so much as frown! I will never regret it!"
How resolute he had been then, how full of conviction.
Thinking back on it now, it was truly...
Hong Yun could not help revealing an extremely bitter, self-mocking smile.
"Heh... No wonder. No wonder Fellow Daoist Wu Ming had warned me so solemnly..."
Indeed. Hongmeng Purple Qi, the foundation for becoming a Saint—how could the price be described as merely "too great"?
It was practically a matter of life and death!
It was something a thousand, ten thousand times more important than his own life!
Looking across the entire Primordial Wilderness, how many people could truly abandon such temptation?
But...
In the end, it was because he had given up his seat back then that he had indirectly implicated Fellow Daoist Kunpeng.
Although Fellow Daoist Wu Ming had said that the Cushion had never belonged to Kunpeng in the first place, and that the Heavenly Dao had long since determined its fate,
Kunpeng would not believe it.
In his eyes, it was Hong Yun who had destroyed his opportunity to obtain the Saint position.
This Karma, a grudge that would not end until one of them died, had truly fallen upon Hong Yun's head.
Moreover, he had already made a solemn promise before Fellow Daoist Wu Ming and Fellow Daoist Zhen Yuanzi.
Regret it now?
Then what would that make him?
A petty man who broke his word, feared death, and had lost his senses to the Saint position?
What face would he have to meet Fellow Daoist Wu Ming in the future?
What face would he have to face Fellow Daoist Zhen Yuanzi, his close friend?
Throughout his life, Hong Yun had always considered himself upright and open, eager to help others, with friends spread across the Primordial Wilderness. What had he relied on?
Was it not the word "trust," and the word "loyalty"?
If he could abandon even the most basic trust and loyalty for the sake of this Hongmeng Purple Qi...
Then even if he were lucky enough to evade Kunpeng's pursuit in the future, and even if he truly became a Saint, would he still be the same Hong Yun?
How could his Dao heart be at peace?
After a long while,
Hong Yun suddenly opened his eyes. Violent struggle flashed deep within them, but in the end, it all transformed into a decisive resolve that brought immense relief.
Forget it!
Forget it!
In the end, I, Hong Yun, am the one who wronged Fellow Daoist Kunpeng.
Then I will give him this Hongmeng Purple Qi!
Once he reached this decision, Hong Yun's state of mind strangely calmed. Although he still felt hollow and deeply disappointed, the struggle that had weighed on him until he could barely breathe had vanished.
He looked toward Zhen Yuanzi, his voice slightly hoarse yet exceptionally clear.
"Fellow Daoist."
Zhen Yuanzi raised his eyes to look at him, his gaze calm.
"Come with me to find Fellow Daoist Wu Ming."
Zhen Yuanzi paused. He stared into Hong Yun's eyes, seemingly trying to confirm something within them.
After a moment, he slowly spoke.
"Fellow Daoist, have you decided?"
"Yes." Hong Yun nodded, his tone firm. "I have decided."
Zhen Yuanzi fell silent again. The wind within the temple seemed to stop as well. Only the leaves of the Ginseng Fruit Tree occasionally rustled softly.
"Hongmeng Purple Qi..." Zhen Yuanzi slowly uttered those four words, each one carrying immense weight. "That is the foundation for becoming a Saint. Fellow Daoist Hong Yun, you..."
He did not finish, but his meaning was obvious.
"I know." Hong Yun interrupted him, a bleak smile appearing on his face. "I know better than anyone what this is."
"But Karma is Karma, and a promise is a promise."
"If I betray my promise simply because I cannot bear to part with this Hongmeng Purple Qi, then how am I, Hong Yun, any different from a fickle, faithless scoundrel?"
"Besides, if I do not give it to him and settle this Karma, then when Fellow Daoist Kunpeng comes looking for me in the future, even you may be implicated because of me."
Zhen Yuanzi furrowed his brows. "Kunpeng... Even if he obtains the Hongmeng Purple Qi, he may not appreciate your kindness. Perhaps he will think it is only right and proper, or even..."
He might even think that you, Hong Yun, owed it to him, that giving it to him was only natural. Even after taking the Hongmeng Purple Qi, he still might not let you off!
Zhen Yuanzi did not say the rest aloud, but Hong Yun understood.
"So what if he does? I only seek to settle the Karma and put my heart at ease."
"As for what he thinks or does after obtaining the Hongmeng Purple Qi, that is his business."
"At the very least, on the surface, this Karma of mutual enmity will be considered settled."
Zhen Yuanzi looked at Hong Yun.
He saw the decisiveness in Hong Yun's eyes, the expression that, though pained, no longer wavered.
He asked his final question.
"Do you regret it?"
"Never!" Hong Yun's gaze was clear, entirely free of its earlier struggle and confusion.
Zhen Yuanzi slowly nodded and said no more.
"Good. Since you have made up your mind, I will accompany you on this trip."
"It's just that... we will have to trouble Fellow Daoist Wu Ming again."
Hong Yun also rose and bowed deeply to Zhen Yuanzi. "Thank you, Fellow Daoist."
Zhen Yuanzi reached out to support him. "Between you and me, there is no need for thanks."
"Let's go."
With those words, the two did not linger. They transformed into two streaks of flowing light, shot out of Wuzhuang Temple, and sped toward Buzhou Mountain.