novel against the - Chapter 2116

Chapter 2116: The Shadow of Ni Jie

The scene vanished, and the fragments dissipated, leaving Yun Che’s soul sea in a state of deathly stillness.

A deathly stillness he had never experienced before.

Both Yun Che and Li Suo fell into a long silence.

After an unknown amount of time, Li Suo spoke softly, “If Mo E had revealed the truth about the Ancestral Sword and the Myriad Tribulations Wheel to the world earlier, would the outcome have been different?”

“It wouldn’t have.” Yun Che responded, his tone drifting, “It’s impossible.”

“Why?”

“There are many reasons…” Yun Che’s voice was slow, “The true nature of the Ancestral Sword and the Myriad Tribulations Wheel was unknown even to the four Creation supreme-rulers and the four Devil Emperors. And their existence as a ‘correction’ was indeed an ancestral secret that could not be revealed to the world.”

“Mo E knew because the Ancestral Sword Spirit told him. It was both a sharing of hearts and a form of entrustment. And with Mo E’s extremely upright nature, how could he easily leak the ancestral secret to others?”

“Moreover, this truth is too heavy. Once known, the two ultimate supreme weapons in their perception would become instruments of judgment hanging above them. The higher one’s position, the more they would bear the eternal, inescapable pressure on their souls. I think, if Mo E could choose again, he would likely choose to remain ignorant.”

“I am even more certain that until he personally buried Mo Su in the abyss of nothingness, he never thought of telling him all the reasons.”

“Why… is that?” Li Suo asked the same two words.

Yun Che’s soul sea tightened violently. He seemed to take a while to calm down before speaking softly, “In the end, Mo E loved his son. He chose to personally bury him, but he must have also wished to see him die with no regrets, with determination, and with tragic heroism, rather than with confusion and regret… Just like Qingyue, who, until she fell into the abyss, only wished that I would have pure hatred for her.”

He recalled the ancient texts of the Dragon supreme-ruler, the last recorded words about the Heaven Punishing supreme-ruler Emperor Mo E:

“Atop the Divine Palace, the Heaven Punishing supreme-ruler Emperor looked up at the sky with closed eyes and passed away peacefully. His last supreme words were the name ‘Mo Su’.”

Back then, when he and Qianye Ying’er read this record, they were shocked, but more than that, they were filled with mockery and doubt. As a father himself, he couldn’t imagine what circumstances could make a person so ruthless as to kill their own child… And if he had already done so ruthlessly, why would he still mourn him at the end of his life?

Yun Che muttered absentmindedly, “Since I obtained the legacy of the Heretical supreme-ruler, some ancient ‘truths’ have gradually pieced together in my mind.”

“Initially, the Heaven Punishing supreme-ruler Emperor, in my perception, was an upright and almost foolish Creation supreme-ruler In many fragments of information and various records, it was pointed out that he was the origin of all calamities. It was his arbitrary actions, his cold-bloodedness and ruthlessness, that ultimately led to the destruction of the supreme-ruler and Devil Era, and also led to the ‘scarlet calamity’ that nearly destroyed the current era.”

“And the Heretical supreme-ruler, in my perception, has always been a savior figure. He single-handedly cleaned up the mess left behind at the end of the supreme-ruler and Devil Era, quelled all the remaining disasters, sealed the Heaven Smiting Devil Emperor and the Evil Infant’s Myriad Tribulations Wheel, and left behind a legacy and will, using his successor… me, to stop the Heaven Smiting Devil Emperor and save the present world.”

“The Heaven Smiting Devil Emperor’s anger and hatred towards Mo E also deepened my negative view of the Heaven Punishing supreme-ruler Emperor.”

“But…” Yun Che’s voice carried a hint of sorrow, “The shadow of the Heretical supreme-ruler I saw was so desolate and despondent¹. At that time, I asked him if he hated Mo E. He answered, ‘I have no right to hate,’ which confused me for a long, long time…”

“All the sins are mine, not his…”

“The former name of the Elemental Creation supreme-ruler is not abandoned, but I am no longer worthy… My subsequent seclusion is not because I have lost all hope, but because I have no face to face the world…”

“What built this world is my sin…”

The words he couldn’t understand back then finally had a clear enough answer at this moment.

“The Heretical supreme-ruler doesn’t hate Mo E, he hates himself. He believes that if not for his union with the Heaven Smiting Devil Emperor, if not for him leading Mo Su step by step to break free from the shackles of convention, and even encouraging him to break through the barrier between supreme-rulers and devils to fall in love with the daughter of Pan Ming… none of the subsequent events would have happened. He believes that he harmed the Heaven Smiting Devil Emperor, harmed their daughter, harmed Mo Su, harmed Mo E… and ultimately led to the end of the supreme-ruler and Devil Era.”

“And the Heaven Punishing supreme-ruler Emperor Mo E also hated himself. The Heaven Punishing Ancestral Sword was swung three times in history. And these three ultimate, unparalleled swords…”

“His first sword was swung at his own son, severing kinship.”

“His second sword was swung at the Heaven Smiting Devil Emperor, severing friendship.”

“His third sword seemed to be swung at the Heretical supreme-ruler, but in reality, it was swung at himself, severing his remaining life.”

Yun Che sighed deeply, “Mo E sacrificed his son and himself to maintain the cornerstone of balance in the supreme-ruler and Devil world; Ni Xuan, until his death, was concerned about the safety of future generations… But why did their lives end in such a way…”

“What is right, what is wrong… what is real, what is fake…”

“Why is it that the more I know, the more I can’t see clearly the difference between right and wrong, real and unreal…”

“Then… everything I’m doing now… the right and wrong I’ve always believed in… is it really what I think it is… Is what I believe to be real just a hazy bubble of illusion…”

“Even the Heretical supreme-ruler and the Heaven Punishing supreme-ruler Emperor were like this… Then my so-called unwavering persistence… is it really pointing in the direction I think it is…”

“……?”

“Yun Che!”

“Yun Che!!”

A holy light, too dazzling for the soul, suddenly arose in his soul sea, finally calming the turmoil of his soul.

Li Suo’s blurred figure, carrying a holy white light, manifested in Yun Che’s soul sea, releasing a warmth that could soothe all the souls in the world.

Her gentle voice, from the very center of his soul sea, gently entered every fiber of his soul, “You once said that in this world, perhaps there is no true right or wrong, good or evil. What is more important than upholding right and wrong, good and evil, is upholding one’s stance.”

Yun Che: “…”

“At first, I couldn’t understand these words. Because the boundaries of right and wrong, good and evil, were incredibly clear in my perception.”

“Until I watched you commit evil deeds time and time again, and felt the stinging pain of your soul time and time again.”

“If there is no good intention, why would the soul be wounded by evil deeds?”

“If the heart is good, why never stop treading the path of evil?”

Her voice became even gentler, like a light breeze caressing clouds, like morning dew condensing, “My perception is incomplete, and my thoughts are always as slow as you say. But over the years, watching everything you’ve done, feeling every fluctuation of your soul, I have gradually come to understand your words from back then.”

“Your stance, your persistence, everything you must protect, has already surpassed your concept of right and wrong, good and evil, and even surpassed your own existence. Therefore, even if every step is on thorns that pierce the soul, you never hesitate, never stop.”

When she first entered the abyss, she constantly questioned, constantly sighed, with repeated incomprehension and helplessness… Later, she always watched silently, offering reminders, offering comfort, and occasionally, offering suggestions that would never be adopted.

“Even I have gradually come to understand and accept, so why do you doubt your long-held persistence?”

The soul sea was silent for a long time before Yun Che’s somewhat strange voice sounded, “I never knew you were so good at comforting people.”

“Is this… considered praise?” Li Suo asked uncertainly.

Yun Che smiled, his tone very natural, “Don’t worry, I’ve experienced all kinds of troubles. My will is not as fragile as you think. I was just a little lost just now.”

In fact, it was far from “just a little.”

“A Creation supreme-ruler who symbolizes holiness and ultimate goodness actually agrees that stance transcends good and evil? If your believers from back then knew this, their faith would probably collapse.” Yun Che’s tone was strange, “I’m a little curious, what is your stance?”

Unexpectedly, Li Suo gave him a direct answer, “My stance, naturally, is you.”

“…” Yun Che was slightly stunned.

“If the end of the road you are walking on is a huge evil fruit, I will bear it with you. After all, I am the one you call an ‘accomplice’, and an incomplete Creation supreme-ruler”

“So, there is no need to be anxious and confused. You are not Ni Xuan, nor Mo E, but the unique Yun Che. I hope, and believe, that you will walk a different path from them.”

“Hmm…” Yun Che seemed to be thinking, “Your words suddenly have a bit of the supreme of a Creation supreme-ruler… It actually moved me a little.”

Li Suo: “?”

A speck of white light shone slightly in the depths of the soul sea.

It was the last memory fragment left by the Heretical supreme-ruler

But when this memory fragment appeared, it released a soul aura completely different from before.

“This soul aura…” Li Suo expressed deep confusion, “It belongs to… me?”

“Strange!” Yun Che was also stunned, “Why would the Heretical supreme-ruler have a memory fragment belonging to you? Unless you gave it to him.”

“…” Li Suo couldn’t recall.

The soul aura released by this memory fragment was extremely weak, but it had a heavy sense of incompleteness. Perhaps it was faded by time, or damaged by external forces.

The white light on the fragment dispersed, spreading out a pure white world in Yun Che’s consciousness.

As the world gradually became clear, Yun Che once again saw the outline of the Temple of Life.

However, the scene was exceptionally blurry, with broken ruins everywhere.

In the scene, a white, fairy-like figure slowly walked towards the Eternal Hub… Although blurred like mist, that unparalleled supreme posture could still be recognized as the Life Creation supreme-ruler, Li Suo.

She stretched out her hand, and white light covered the sleeping girl in the Eternal Hub. She spoke softly, “There is such a special soul foundation and soul source in the world, neither human, nor supreme-ruler, nor devil.”

“Is this… the union of supreme-ruler and devil?”

At this moment, the white light covering the girl suddenly dissipated.

The space distorted slightly, and above the girl, a seemingly illusory shadow slowly appeared.

Yun Che couldn’t see the full appearance of this shadow, but he could vaguely discern that it was the shadow of a girl with long, night-like hair and snow-white skin… but it wasn’t Hong’er’s hair color, nor Hong’er’s figure.

Facing this suddenly appearing girl’s shadow, Li Suo’s hand froze in mid-air, not moving for a long time.

As the Creation supreme-ruler of Life, she was lost in thought for a long time.

The girl spoke, her voice ethereal and illusory, “Hello, Senior Li Suo. It’s our first meeting. My name is Ni Jie, and I am the daughter of my father, Ni Xuan, and my mother, Jie Yuan.”

Li Suo’s snow-white hand finally lowered gently, her eyes still fixed on the girl’s shadow, “There is… such a beautiful thing in the world…”

She was the Creation supreme-ruler of Life who gathered all the elegance of the ancient world, yet she uttered the same exclamation of being lost in thought that people would only utter when facing her.

The girl continued, her voice carrying a hint of urgency, “Before my father separated my devil soul, I secretly hid a wisp of my soul. Fortunately, his mind was too chaotic to notice. However, my existence only has these last few dozen breaths.”

“I request the kindest and most beautiful Senior Li Suo, when you solidify my soul in my new body, do not completely cover my soul foundation and soul source, but leave a gap.”

Li Suo looked at her, “Why?”

“Because my father couldn’t bear to annihilate my devil soul and hid it instead. So, as long as my soul foundation is not sealed and my soul source is not extinguished, if one day I can touch my devil soul again, there may be a possibility of returning to completeness.”

After a brief silence, Li Suo slowly shook her head, “I can’t.”

“Although I don’t know the details, Ni Xuan’s painful decision likely involves a promise with Mo E. He is not a man to break his promises, and Mo E is even less tolerant of broken promises.”

“Senior Li Suo is very smart,” the girl praised, seemingly with a smile, as if she had no fear of her imminent eternal dissipation, “But I am just a girl who doesn’t understand anything. I don’t care about your adult promises. No matter how many promises there are, they are not as important as my father’s safety.”

“Your father’s… safety?”

“Didn’t Senior Li Suo notice? My father’s supreme soul is already shattered.”

“…” Li Suo did not deny it.

“He is in too much pain, too much guilt, too much self-blame. His Creation supreme-ruler soul has cracked open many, many fissures. He just wants to avoid the world and sleep… And if his supreme soul continues to crack like this, his sleep will become longer and longer. Perhaps he won’t even have a hundred years of clarity in a million years.”

“I… am powerless,” Li Suo’s voice carried deep helplessness and guilt. She could save all living beings, but she could not save the shattered soul of a Creation supreme-ruler

“But I have a way to repair my father’s supreme soul.”

The girl’s figure obviously faded a bit, and her voice became even more urgent, “Moreover, I heard Senior Mo E say with his own ears that his promise to the Ancestral Sword Spirit, his intolerance of the fusion of supreme-ruler and devil, will last until the end of his life… That is to say, after his death, all grudges, persistence, and promises will be resolved.”

“Therefore, I will not make things difficult for my father and Senior Li Suo. Even if I want to return to completeness, it must be after Senior Mo E’s death. Senior Li Suo, I beg you, otherwise, my father will really… slowly fall into eternal sleep.”

“But…” Li Suo said, “If the soul foundation and soul source are not covered, your new body and temperament will never be able to grow, forever remaining in a childish state. And the possibility of restoring completeness is infinitely slim. Even so, do you still insist?”

“Yes!” The girl answered without any hesitation, “I can’t let my father continue to be so sorrowful. Even if there is only a little hope, I must save him. This is what I must do as his daughter. Otherwise, when Mother returns, she will be very sad and heartbroken…”

Mother… returns?

Li Suo did not correct the girl’s “fantasy” about her mother’s return as a daughter.

The girl’s figure weakened a bit more, leaving only a faint mist.

“Senior Li Suo, please promise me. In return, I can tell Senior Li Suo a big secret. When my father was fighting with Senior Mo E, I found that I could… perceive… 诛 (Punishing)…”

The girl’s shadow suddenly dissipated along with her voice.

Leaving Li Suo in a long daze.