"Jiang Wang." The Emperor of Qi's voice seemed to descend from the Ninth Heaven. "Are you truly not afraid of death?"
"I am afraid of death, terrified of it!" Jiang Wang said. "I still have many things left undone. There are still many things in this world that bind my heart, and I still owe so much... so much! If I were to return to the Source Sea now, I would not be willing! But for some reason, I have faith in Your Majesty. People say the imperial house is heartless; people speak of an emperor's calculations. Yet I have always felt that Your Majesty has treated me with the utmost generosity, with utmost sincerity. And I have answered the Son of Heaven with sincerity as well! I once heard: 'A hundred tangled knots breed demonic sin; where the heart will not yield, it makes its own prison!' How can someone as foolish as I deceive myself? Perhaps I could deceive myself for a moment—but could I deceive myself for a lifetime? Perhaps I could deceive my own heart—but could I deceive my sovereign? Your Majesty, I have come to understand that my path is not here, not within the framework of a state. After leaving Qi State, I will not join any other nation. From now on, the road to the ends of the earth is long, and I shall seek the Dao alone."
"What a line—'A hundred tangled knots breed demonic sin; where the heart will not yield, it makes its own prison!'" The Emperor of Qi clapped his hands. "I never knew that you were so unwilling in Qi State!"
"Your Majesty." Jiang Wang remained bent at the waist, not straightening again. "My unwillingness is not because Your Majesty has treated me poorly, nor because Qi State