"We have protected them for thousands of years."
"Now it is time for them to contribute to us."
"This is their destiny."
His words sounded perfectly justified.
Li Xiaoyu looked at him, and even his steadfast Dao heart wavered.
Yes.
What he said seemed to make sense.
He and the generations of predecessors from the Green Cloud Sect had sacrificed far too much to protect this world.
Yet those mortals had peacefully enjoyed the peace bought with their lives.
Perhaps he really should think of himself for once.
Just as his Dao heart was about to be consumed by wicked thoughts, a figure appeared within his sea of consciousness.
She was an exquisitely beautiful woman in white.
The woman who would stand by his side without hesitation, no matter what choice he made.
"Xiaoyu."
She looked at him and smiled gently.
"No matter what choice you make, I will support you."
"But I hope you will not forget your original aspiration."
"Do not forget why you fight."
Li Xiaoyu shuddered at her words.
Why did he fight?
Had he not chosen to embark on the path of cultivation in order to protect others?
To protect Li Family Village, the place that had raised him.
To protect the master who had treated him like his own son.
To protect the fellow disciples who fought beside him.
To protect the woman he had spent his entire life loving.
To protect this land that sustained him.
To protect all living beings.
That was his Dao.
It was also the sole meaning of his existence.
"I understand now."
He looked at the sinister figure and smiled with relief.
"I refuse."
He looked at the utterly stunned figure and spoke steadily, his voice firm.
"I choose to live and die alongside them."
"What did you