That faint glow finally went out completely.
It departed without a trace, leaving not even the slightest mark upon this world.
But with its last warmth, it had sheltered another wisp of true spirit.
Li Tiezhu's true spirit.
Broken and weak, as though the lightest breath could scatter it, yet it had indeed survived.
The system had traded its own disappearance for his sliver of a chance at life.
But it was only a sliver.
The price was equally plain to see.
Without that special will guiding it, the most perfect weapon, as Taichu had called it, abruptly ceased to function.
The black crystal that had been constantly absorbing Filth began spinning aimlessly in midair.
And the Filth, freed of its restraints, once again dispersed throughout heaven and earth.
Taichu's seamless plan to mend heaven unraveled from within at the most crucial moment, just as the net was closing.
In the Void, Taichu's brows drew into a deep furrow.
"Why?"
A rare hint of hesitation entered his voice. "It was merely formed from a strand of Origin Source will I casually plucked away. It could never have grown a dragon's untouchable scale."
"The method of mending heaven was the sole meaning of its existence."
"Why would it defy my command?"
"Choose to extinguish itself for the sake of a vessel?"
This utterly defied the most fundamental principle between heaven and earth: seeking benefit and avoiding harm.
Taichu looked at Si Chen, seemingly seeking an answer from him.
Si Chen smiled. "This is the meaning of existence itself."
"Everything in this world, be it grass, trees, mountains, and rivers, or the illusory creations in your eyes..."
"Without desire or feeling, it is wood."
"With desire but no feeling, it is a beast."
"Without desire but with feeling, it approaches the constancy