What the Light Was Not

"She's in a state of confusion." M'uru looked at Liadrin, who was standing there in a daze, and said to Zul'ra.

"Liadrin..." Zul'ra stretched out her hand and gently patted Liadrin's slender shoulder beside her.

"Zul'ra Jin, what exactly are we missing?" Liadrin unconsciously raised her head and asked the question that had been on her mind.

"There's a lack of reason to fight." Zul'ra answered naturally, having connected with Liadrin's mind, observed Sin'dorei's situation, and had the answer to her questions.

"A reason to fight!" Liadrin's dim eyes brightened slightly.

"Yes, the reason for your struggle is that your race has been ravaged by the Scourge. In times like these, you are constantly fighting to save your race, but you don't understand why you should save the Sin'dorei?" Zul'ra pointed out the problem directly to Liadrin.

In short, the Sin'dorei have lost their leader. They don't know what meaning there is left for their ravaged nation to fight for. Kael'thas, who should have helped them unite in this cause, left for Outland after promising to rebuild and find a new home, failing to stay when his people needed him.

"..." Zul'ra's direct pointing finger struck Liadrin like lightning. Yes, that's right. She, and almost all of the Sin'dorei, were in a state of confusion, unaware of their own problems, unaware of what they were fighting for. This was what the Sin'dorei lacked!

Realizing what the Sin'dorei truly lacked, Liadrin was struck by another question: what were the Sin'dorei fighting for? Fighting the the Scourge, allying with their archenemy Amani, preparing to join the Horde —what was the point? Why not simply disappear from the world altogether, clinging to life like this?

"Haha..." Liadrin gasped as the thought suddenly crossed her mind. She couldn't even begin to describe how terrifying the idea of simply disappearing from the world was.

"Do you understand now?" Zul'ra asked, looking at Liadrin suddenly gasped for breath after a moment of contemplation.

"..." Liadrin nodded silently, but then shook her head. She fully understood and acknowledged the Sin'dorei's current problem, but she couldn't come up with a solution!

They would fight for it even to the death, but what was the purpose of their struggle? Liadrin couldn't find the answer. Quel'Thalas had been reduced to ashes by the the Scourge, Kael'thas was far away in Outland, and Silvermoon City, though barely united, was riddled with problems. What meaning was there left for this nation and race to fight for?

"Liadrin." Zul'ra called the Elves's name solemnly, causing her to raise her head and look at him.

"In your opinion, what is the Light?" Zul'ra tapped his index finger lightly in front of the female Elves's delicate face, and strands of golden light gathered at his fingertip.

"The Light..." Liadrin gazed at the golden light at Zul'ra's fingertips, her pupils involuntarily brightening as she recalled the warm sunlight of the past, when her adoptive father taught her the doctrines of the Light in the courtyard.

"Beautiful, warm, kind..." Liadrin murmured, reciting her description and understanding of the Light.

"The Light is nothing." Zul'ra looked at the murmuring Liadrin and gently gave the answer.

"... Nothing at all!" Liadrin couldn't help but raise her head, staring at the Trolls before her, somewhat bewildered. "The Light is nothing"—it sounded like an arrogant statement, but upon closer reflection, it was like the saying "Man is not a thing." Of course, man is not a thing, and so is the Light. But if the Light the Light is nothing, then what is it?

"Let's ask M'uru!" Zul'ra looked at the clueless Liadrin and couldn't help but sigh slightly. The sudden enlightenment she had imagined didn't happen. Her imagination just couldn't keep up!

"The Light is nothing, the Light is everything, the Light is the Light." M'uru faced Liadrin, who had been facing him, and his body radiated light, responding in a clear, singing voice.

"The Light is nothing, the Light is everything, the Light is simply the Light." Liadrin, facing the radiant light emanating from M'uru, froze on the spot. The Light, so it is the Light! Yes! Why couldn't she understand such a simple question? The Light is beauty, warmth, and kindness; besides these, it is nothing!

The profession of Priest is like Chan Buddhism, which seeks strength from within and requires a very high level of enlightenment. Enlightenment is very much about Zen insights, which are the resonance of ideas.

The same words spoken by different people, the same actions performed by different people, can have completely different meanings. Zul'ra and Liadrin had different experiences, so his interpretation could not resonate with Liadrin, but M'uru was different.

M'uru's personal fate was similarly tumultuous to that of the Sin'dorei race. Due to his blindness to fate, he suffered imprisonment and torture at the hands of the Sin'dorei, a truly undeserved calamity. He had doubts about his fate, but he never complained, believing it was the path he had chosen, and he accepted Liadrin's apology.

Having shared similar experiences and possessing a broad and selfless heart, M'uru's answer struck Liadrin like lightning, instantly bringing to mind so many memories: her adoptive father's love and guidance, his conversations with Master Belovar like an old married couple, and how she often jokingly wondered why they didn't get married!

The beautiful memories of the past resurfaced, Liadrin suddenly remembered the reason why the Sin'dorei needed to fight. Wasn't their struggle precisely to restore these past beauties? But they had abandoned the Light because of the suffering brought by the the Scourge, and in the process, the Light had not given them the help they deserved. She had abandoned the Light in this way, ignoring the fact that the Light itself could not help her, and abandoning the beauty of the past.

Memories flooded her mind, Liadrin bit her lip, tears streaming down her face. She even remembered Zul'ra asking her if she would ever come into contact with Arcane energy, and how she had replied, "I will never accept the Light again." Looking back now, she realized how ridiculous and naive her answer had been.

"The Light will not abandon anyone; only people abandon the Light." M'uru said these words to Liadrin, who was biting her lip and weeping. He could feel her deep sorrow and self-reproach.

"Growth is a painful transformation; only by tasting pain can one know what beauty is." Zul'ra glanced at Liadrin, whose face was streaked with tears, and felt a sense of sudden realization.

"I'm sorry, Mr. Vondelor, I'm sorry, Master Belovar, I'm sorry, Zul'ra Jin, I'm sorry, M'uru, I'm sorry..." Liadrin felt like a child for a moment, ignoring and betraying so much kindness and goodwill.

"Well, you don't seem to have done anything to wrong me!" Zul'ra blinked slightly when he heard that Liadrin was also involved, but he swallowed his words because Liadrin was currently grieving.