Chapter Forty-Nine: Liu Tian's True Nature

In the quiet little room, the only sound was their breathing. Liu Tian placed Xiaohua back in his mother's arms and casually unfolded the imperial edict.

It was a properly issued imperial edict, complete with the heading, format, and seals. As mentioned earlier, it appointed Liu Zhengde as City Lord of Pei Commandery. But there was no mention of recruiting Liu Yun as a Naval Instructor.

"Was it an oral decree?" Liu Tian looked up and asked. "Where is the messenger? Did you kneel to receive it?"

"The oral decree was delivered by Eunuch Li Lianying, the chief eunuch, who is the most favored in the imperial palace." Liu Zhengde's face showed an unmistakable, involuntary trace of awe. He had just said that the Crimson Cloud Empire wouldn't last much longer, but when a eunuch representing imperial authority came to visit, the reverence for the throne ingrained in him over many years still came through. "Eunuch Li is having tea in the hall..."

"So you knelt to receive it." Liu Tian half-closed his eyes and shook his head. "Forget it. I can't be bothered to get involved, as long as it doesn't drag me in. Second Uncle, from the looks of you, you're planning to take up the post. It'll be a triumphant homecoming, at least. What about you, Mom and Dad? Are you planning to accept?"

Liu Yun and Sophie exchanged a glance. They had just started to speak when Liu Tian cut in. "Oh, before you decide, Mom and Dad, you should think about this: my senior brother just thoroughly offended the emperor. The only reason the emperor can't retaliate is that my senior brother is too strong."

"When he gets old and can't fight anymore, the emperor might settle the score then..."

"You want to serve as officials in this country? Are you prepared to rebel?"

They were family, so Liu Tian spoke plainly and simply. He himself, however, looked unconcerned, without a trace of fear.

After all, judging by his current rate of progress, he would have become the strongest person in the world through his own efforts long before Bai Cinan grew too old to fight.

Gene Modification was limited by the level of technology, and martial arts training was limited by one's talent. But there was no limit to [effort]. Even without putting in extra points, he would only grow a little more slowly.

His growth was permanent. That meant that as he grew stronger, other people's progress would eventually stagnate, while his would only get faster.

"Don't go casually talking about rebellion again." Liu Yun furrowed his brow, as if he wanted to say more, but in the end, all he could do was sigh. "Son, of course we've thought about what you said. But your senior brother Cinan is still under thirty and in his prime, while the emperor won't outlive him."

"When the emperor passes away and the crown prince takes the throne, there'll be another generation between them. And Martial Artists have long lifespans. The crown prince probably won't outlive either of you two. Even if things come to the worst, who knows how much longer this vast Crimson Cloud Empire will last?"

"For the sake of the future, your Second Uncle needs a base of his own. Besides, after the great deed your senior brother has done, there's no way our family can go back to living the way we used to, even if we return to the Tulip Kingdom."

"The Crimson Cloud Empire is already in that bad a state?" Liu Tian recalled what he had seen while traveling around earlier and thought about the living standards of the people nearby. "It doesn't look that way."

"It wasn't before, but it is now, after what your senior brother Cinan did." Liu Zhengde explained, "The Crimson Cloud Empire has been around for a long time, and it's always been weighed down by deep-rooted problems. It used to keep going by draining its colonies, but ever since it lost the New Continent, people's living standards have steadily declined. It's only the imperial family's authority that's kept things together."

"But after what your senior brother Cinan did, that fig leaf was ripped away. Quite a few families are already itching to make their move."

"The Son of Heaven should be whoever has the strongest army and most capable forces. Does a dynasty have to leave the people destitute before it can be replaced? Then destitute they'll be. The Crimson Cloud Empire is already teetering on the edge of a cliff..."

"Then why are you staying here, in a place where the dynasty could fall at any moment?" Liu Tian looked surprised, then quickly composed himself. "Never mind. It doesn't matter anyway."

"Son, it does matter." Sophie smiled gently. "Your father and I called you here because we wanted to hear your opinion."

"Your father has been away for so many years. Now that he's older, he wants to return to his roots. I don't have many ties left in the kingdom either. Wherever you are is home to me. As long as we're together, any place can be home."

"My opinion is that either way is fine. Do whatever you think is best. But no matter what you decide, I'm not staying here." Liu Tian made his position quite clear. "Still, it might not be a bad idea for you two to stay here. As long as no one does anything stupid, even if the fighting spreads again, it won't reach you."

"Wait. I've thought it over. You two should stay here after all. You'll be returning to your roots, and Second Uncle can look after you. My senior brother's reputation still carries weight, too. Staying here is much safer than going back."

"You want us to stay here while you go back to the kingdom alone?" Liu Yun immediately grew agitated. "If that's the case, we won't stay here either. We'll go back to the kingdom with you..."

"What would you go back to the kingdom for? Is whaling that much fun? It's been so many years, Dad. You must be tired of it by now. It's about time you got some proper rest." Liu Tian continued, "You can also take the time to teach my little sister properly. Didn't you used to say you hadn't spent enough time with me when I was little? You'll have plenty of time to do that here."

"I'm going back because my studies are there, my master is there, and my friends are there." As he spoke, Liu Tian smiled. "Of course, none of that is really important. What matters is that there's an opportunity in the kingdom right now, and for the time being, there isn't one here. I don't want to wait around for an opportunity that might never come."

"Seizing the moment is what matters most! Waiting will only make you miss your chance."

"You want to get involved in that?" Liu Yun immediately realized what Liu Tian meant and grew even more agitated. "Have you gone mad? We were already doing everything we could to stay out of it, and now you want to throw yourself right into the middle of it? No, absolutely not. It's too dangerous."

"Things are different now." Liu Tian shrugged, showing no sign of changing his mind. "Back then, you thought my practicing martial arts was a waste of time, a mistake. If I hadn't been there this time, or if I hadn't learned martial arts, we'd all have been done for."

"I stayed out of it before because I had no strength and would've been crushed, and because I had no plans to get involved. Now I want to step in because I have the strength and I have a plan."

"Since my senior brother Cinan pulled off such a great feat, how could I let him have all the glory?"

"Besides, I really do need another force that'll follow my orders and help me with certain things—even if I'm only borrowing someone else's power."

"You want to get involved in the succession to the throne?" Sophie realized what he meant as well, and echoed her husband's words. "No. It's too dangerous."

"What in this world isn't dangerous? You could even choke to death while eating." Liu Tian smiled, showing no intention of changing his mind. "Besides, there's something I've been keeping from you. The Heavenly Martial Killing Dao my master practices is actually a demonic art—one that lets its practitioners grow stronger by devouring one another."

"That's right. My master has already lost his Dominating Thought and Killing Intent, so he's not part of this. But my senior brother Cinan and I will have to fight sooner or later."

"Maybe it'll be for the sake of becoming stronger, or maybe for something else. Most likely, we won't be able to stand having someone beside us who might threaten us. We'll want to prove that we're the strongest in the world."

"My senior brother Cinan is already far ahead of me. I have to push myself to catch up."

"Y-You never told us about this! Tian Dao actually taught you such dangerous martial arts? No, you have to stop practicing them." Sophie was so alarmed that even Xiaohua woke in her arms, but she could no longer care about that. Her voice broke as she said, "You just have to stop trying to be the strongest in the world. Can't our family just stay together? You're already strong enough, son. You're a fighter!"

"Can't we just stay together as a family? You can study, get married, and have children. Wouldn't that be nice? You have to stop practicing martial arts, son. It's too dangerous..."

"If I hadn't practiced martial arts, we'd all have died this time." Liu Tian sighed and met his father's gaze. Then he crouched down, wiped his mother's face, and comforted her. "Mom, don't cry. You're a grown woman, and you're having a second child. You'll look awful with your face all blotchy."

"You know I'll never change my mind." There was an unmistakable firmness in Liu Tian's voice. "You know, I used to feel lost all the time."

"This world is so vast, and we're so tiny."

"Compared to the boundless universe, we're like intelligent ants. No, maybe we're not even as much as ants."

"I couldn't find a goal to strive for or see any hope for the future. Whenever I thought about how everyone would die in the end and everything would turn to nothing, I wondered what the point was in trying so hard. It seemed better to just drift along, day after day."

"In the end, we all become a handful of earth, a breath of wind. We bring nothing with us when we're born, and take nothing with us when we die."

"But things are different now. I have a goal. There are things I want to do." Liu Tian stood up and spread his arms as if he were embracing something. "I want to become stronger. I want to see more. I want to witness this world with my own eyes. I want to... keep on living, forever."

"I have the ability and the potential. So why shouldn't I fight for it? Why shouldn't I give it everything I have for the things I truly want?"

"I'm not really interested in kingship, power, ruling the world, or anything like that."

"But I want to travel the whole world, see all its sights, and do whatever I want."

"That's right. I don't want to become stronger for any other reason. The end of that power represents everything. It represents all hope."

"I won't turn back or stop until I reach my goal."

"But don't worry, Mom. I'm strong. I won't be beaten. I won't lose!"

"Yes. I will never lose!"