Xie Ji held onto Mu Yao's cold fingers, refusing to let go.
Before coming here, he only wanted to save Ji Shi, and if possible, destroy the place that Ji Shi mentioned as the place to end everything.
Perhaps it really can save the empire from collapse.
All he wanted was for everyone to live well, why couldn't that be allowed?
What kind of bullshit world law is this? Why can it destroy and reopen things at will?
Xie Ji released Mu Yao's hand and walked to the giant World Tree, where Zhuang Huan was still gesturing on the ground.
"How can we destroy this damn thing?" Xie Ji clenched his fists, his eyes bloodshot as he stared at the tree trunk before him. "Would it work if we blew it up?"
"It's not that simple," Zhuang Huan muttered to himself, then fell silent.
Xie Ji was filled with grief and indignation, but had nowhere to vent it. He felt a dull pain in his chest and his vision blurred. Instinctively, he reached out and grabbed the huge tree trunk for support.
"Have you read Norse mythology?" Zhuang Huan suddenly asked. "In Norse mythology, the only thing capable of destroying the World Tree is a dragon."
Xie Ji paused for a moment. "... Dragon?"
"Yes." Zhuang Huan turned to look at him. "Black Dragon."
Xie Ji subconsciously thought of the black dragon in his dream... Di Mang.
The Little Black appeared on the tree trunk, quickly slid down the trunk, and landed on Xie Ji's shoulder.
"... I remember now," Little Black Hei said softly, " Ji Qing."
Xie Ji exhaled a hot breath. "What do you mean?"
"You are Ji Qing." Little Black flicked its snake tail. "Only Di Mang and Lu Xunji can deal with these things in the trees."
Xie Ji glanced at Zhuang Huan beside him, who was still intently watching the World Tree, seemingly oblivious to what Little Black was saying.
"These sins require Lu Xunji to Ji Qing for them personally; you cannot do it in his place."
Xie Ji was dizzy and wanted to strangle Little Black: "What exactly do you mean? Can you even explain yourself clearly?!"
"The memories have been collected. Let me show you." After saying this, Little Black transformed into a wisp of black smoke and entered Xie Ji's brow.
-
Xie Ji opened his eyes, and there before him were the familiar pear trees again.
But now the young, golden-haired immortal is gone; all that remains is a ragged corpse.
A long sword was stuck in Di Mang's heart.
The longsword pierced his heart, and in addition, seven bone arrows pierced his limbs, shoulders, and the space between his eyebrows, pinning him firmly to the pear tree.
Blood stained the ground, and his once long black hair was now matted with blood and hung haphazardly in front of him.
Xie Ji ran over and reached out to touch Di Mang's face, but his hand passed right through Di Mang's body.
Tell me, do you know you were wrong?
A familiar voice came from behind him, but the coldness and disappointment in its tone were something he had never seen before.
Xie Ji suddenly turned his head. Ji Qing stood in front of the tree, a gentle breeze lifting the hem of his clothes, carrying fallen white petals, his longbow held imposingly in his hand.
Di Mang grinned, blood continuously spilling from his mouth.
"Disciple, I know I was wrong."
Ji Qing's fingers, gripping the bow and arrow, turned white, and his voice was hoarse. "Do you have any regrets?"
No regrets.
With those two resounding words, Ji Qing's eyes turned bloodshot. "When I taught you the art of Heavenly Secrets Unbounded, what did I tell you?"
"One must not kill indiscriminately, one must not indulge in whims, one must not defy Heaven." Di Mang was severely injured and spoke slowly, "The art of manipulating Heavenly Secrets Unbounded goes against the laws of Heaven and cause and effect. Indiscriminate killing, indulgence, and acts against Heaven will surely bring a thousandfold backlash."
Ji Qing, exasperated, said, "Since you knew all this, why did you still slaughter the demon race, annihilating 300,000 lives in the Zhouhuang! Di Mang, you grew up in the Zhouhuang Zhouhuang should know best that while many demons deserved to die, many were innocent! Who taught you to act so perversely, disregarding the consequences?!"
"Master, the Demon Clan attacked Kunlun, and our eldest brother fought valiantly to his death. You've never smiled since." Di Mang said in a low voice, "The rift between the two races can never truly be dissolved, and the war will never end. The only way is for one side to disappear permanently. I am the one stained with blood, what does it have to do with you, Master? I will grant the Immortal Clan this great unification, and I will also grant you half a lifetime of fulfillment."
Ji Qing drew his longbow, leaving a whip mark on Di Mang's body. "Nonsense! Di Mang, have you gone mad!"
Di Mang let out a muffled groan.
Ji Qing took a deep breath. "From now on, I will never see you again."
After saying this, the long-haired immortal turned and left.
"Master," Di Mang said in a low voice, " The Immortal Realm has no need for the descendant of Bai Ze, who has been tainted by demonic energy. The Demon Realm also cannot tolerate a young master with the blood of a divine beast. There is nowhere for me in the vast and desolate Netherworld. I have willingly embarked on this path of no return. For thousands of years, I have been searching and struggling, just to find a sliver of opportunity to make Master pause for me for a moment."
Ji Qing paused for a moment, then flicked his sleeves and left.
Di Mang's Unbounded Technique, nearly annihilating his soul and spirit.
It was only by Ji Qing to extract seven of his own fox bones and nail Di Mang's soul into his body that Di Mang's life was barely saved.
Later, he was reborn into the three thousand worlds to atone for Di Mang's sins.
With each cycle of reincarnation, some computing power dissipates, and in this world, the computing power is about to be exhausted.
When his computing power dissipates, it will also be the moment he completes his atonement for Di Mang's sins, and his body and soul will vanish.
It turns out that the Little Black that accompanied him was not an incarnation of some system, but rather Di Mang's guardian spirit.
It is the protection of the mind that allows computing power to be gradually reassembled in this final world.
Xie Ji suddenly opened his eyes.
Little Black materialized from between Xie Ji's eyebrows, its snake tail gently brushing against Xie Ji's forehead. "Master..."
Xie Ji suddenly remembered something, and he yanked Zhuang Huan: "Let's go back!"
"No, that won't do." Zhuang Huan shook off his hand. "I can't leave. I have to stay here. You take Ji Shi and the others back."
Xie Ji took a deep breath. "What's wrong with you? Why are you staying here?"
"It's safe here, isn't it?" Zhuang Huan said. "Maybe you'll come back and pick me up then, but right now, I can't leave."
Xie Ji gritted his teeth. "I'll leave you seven days' worth of food. I'll come back in seven days."
After saying that, he turned and ran towards the mecha.
Ji Shi sat down next to Mu Yao, turned to look at Xie Ji, and whispered, "Are you leaving?"
Xie Ji nodded. "Let's go home."
Ji Shi glanced at Mu Yao's pale profile and nodded. "Okay, let's take him home."
Xie Ji divided the food that belonged to Zhuang Huan, and then set off with Ji Shi.
Escaping the black hole requires even more energy, Ji Shi piloted the mecha to the edge of the black hole, the energy was almost depleted.
As the mecha battled against the immense suction, Ji Shi spoke up, " Xie Little Ji, go check the safety pod. I remember there's another core there, a spare one Shen Ting left for me."
Xie Ji nodded and, despite the completely out-of-control gravity system, went to the safety cabin. He searched around twice but didn't find any core.
Just as he was about to turn around and go back to the cockpit to ask Ji Shi, he found that the hatch to the safety cabin was closed and repair fluid was seeping up.
Xie Ji slammed his fist on the cabin door and shouted, " Ji Shi, what are you doing?!"
"I'm sorry." Ji Shi stood outside the hatch, mouthed something to him, then waved and said, "Goodbye."
The safety pod was ejected from the mech by the enormous thrust, instantly escaping the black hole's gravitational pull and drifting towards the Second War Zone.
The mech itself, propelled by the thrust, instantly plunged into darkness.
Even the last bit of energy was transferred to the safe pod, where countless monsters swarmed in and tore the already damaged mech to shreds.
Xie Ji's eyes widened, barely able to react. The repair fluid suffocated him, and the numbing effect made his limbs stiff. He wanted to shout, but couldn't. His tears melted into the repair fluid, leaving no trace.
Everything around fell silent.
[System notification: Target [ Ji Shi ]'s favorability towards you has decreased by 100, currently at 0. Congratulations, host.]
[System notification: Target [ Zhou Heyu ]'s favorability towards you has decreased by 80, currently at 0. Congratulations, host.]