Chapter 2453 - Su Yi Versus Di E

The Boundless Battlefield.

The winds blew yellow sands throughout the dusky skies

Wen Qingfeng and the others sat on the ground, drinking and making merry.

Tomorrow, they’d leave the Boundless Battlefield for good. The thought of truly leaving the place they’d fought for so long actually left the old monsters feeling a bit melancholy.

But more than that, they were eager to return to the God Domain!

It... had been far, far too long since they’d last been home.

The God Domain was where their families, friends, and clansmen lived, all the people they cared about. So much time had passed that none of them knew whether their loved ones were alive and well or not.

Time changed everything it touched. None of them dared say with certainty that the familiar faces and places of their memories hadn’t been washed away by the passage of time.

But they were nonetheless eager, because...

The God Domain was their home!

Su Yi was on a solitary stroll, jug of wine in hand. He wandered aimlessly, stopping only for the occasional sip of wine.

A figure accompanied him, so indistinct she was all but invisible. She was graceful and elegant, dreamlike and ethereal.

This was none other than Luo Yao!

“A’Yao, I’ll be sure to bring you back one day,” Su Yi whispered.

Luo Yao’s decision to end her own life had filled him with heart-rending grief.

It was only after everything was over that Su Yi realized that the rusted sword sheath had saved a portion of her vital source energy in her last moments.

Although it was just a wisp of vital energy, not enough to rebuild her body or bring her back, it was enough to soothe Su Yi’s heart.

He had her skeletal hand and he controlled the power of reincarnation. So long as even a wisp of Luo Yao remained, he had a chance of helping her achieve rebirth through reincarnation!

“Don’t force it,” said Luo Yao, her figure incomparably indistinct. Her voice was almost inaudible, as if it were emanating from afar.

“Humans die just as lamps ultimately go out. My body, soul, and cultivation base have long since dissipated. Even if I’m gone for good, I have no regrets.”

Su Yi took a sip of wine and said nothing. He and Luo Yao just walked side by side in silence.

They looked like they were at close quarters, but in truth, they were separated by Yin and Yang. It was the distance between life and death.

Luo Yao said suddenly, “Daoist Brother, can I ask you to do something for me?”

“You don’t need to ‘ask’ anything,” said Su Yi. “Tell me what you want, and I’ll do it.”

Luo Yao smiled, then said tenderly, “I just hope that you won’t abandon your humanity in pursuit of your path.”

Su Yi was stunned.

Humanity!

He instantly understood what Luo Yao was getting at. The vast majority of gods sought to become Undying. Master Gods in turn sought Eternity.

They saw the seven emotions and six desires as tribulations, and their humanity as a fetter. Thus, they severed emotions and extinguished their desires in pursuit of the Grand Dao.

Like Gu Huaxian, who pursued ultimate heartlessness.

Or the Dipankara Buddha, who sought to see through the illusory nature of reality.

Or Master God Yun He, who sought inaction and emptiness.

Ultimately, all such paths involved severing emotions and snuffing out desires.

Thus, in the eyes of the masses, gods were like the heavens: unfathomably powerful, but heartless. They saw all living beings as straw dogs.

Gods eliminated their humanity, leaving only “divinity” behind.

𝘧𝓇ℯ𝑒𝓌𝑒𝑏𝓃𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘭.𝒸ℴ𝓂

The higher one’s cultivation, the less human they seemed.

“Daoist Brother, you’ve changed since your return. You still have your emotions, and your majesty is even greater than before,” Luo Yao said softly. “But your personality is too detached; it’s like you’re standing beyond the clouds. You can see everything happening beneath you, yet you seem incomparably distant and unattainable.”

Su Yi rubbed his forehead. “You... feel that way too?”

Luo Yao subtly inclined her head. “The seven emotions and six desires are fundamental to human nature. Joy, sorrow, and anger rise from the heart. The Divine Dao is merely a level of cultivation. We can extinguish our own humanity over something like that.

“If we become inhuman, so what if we master the Grand Dao and become invincible beneath the heavens? How will we be any different from the unfeeling Laws of the natural order?”

Su Yi said with admiration, “Well said! Your words resonate with me deeply.”

Luo Yao was stunned. Before she could say anything, Su Yi continued, “Human nature comes in countless forms. All of us are different. I might be proud and aloof by nature, but I’ve never tried to snuff out my emotions, and I disdain the path of heartlessness.

“Even if I one day prove my Dao and become Eternal, or reach a path beyond even that, I won’t forget who I am.”

As he spoke, numerous thoughts rose to the forefront of Su Yi’s mind.

If he were heartless, how could he concern himself with the karma of his past lives?

Had he severed his emotions and snuffed out his desires, how could he have come to the Boundless Battlefield alone to save his old friends?

And how could he have concerned himself with Yi Daoxuan’s flesh and blood after learning that Yi Chen was the son Lu Qingmei had borne him?”

But Luo Yao’s reminder was unquestionably rare and precious. Su Yi realized that, perhaps because his cultivation was rising too fast, or perhaps because he’d engaged in too many battles, he was gradually losing sight of his humanity.

“Wonderful,” Luo Yao said with a smile. “When you move too quickly or stand too tall, you often forget your roots.

“There’s a question I’ve been pondering throughout my time in the Boundless Battlefield. Which is more important, proving your Dao and becoming Eternal, or holding onto your humanity?

“I’ve always been hesitant to pick an answer. It’s difficult to choose, as if my heart were stuck in the mud, unable to advance or retreat. I’d reached a bottleneck.

“It was only in the moment that I chose to end my life that I finally came to my senses. Humanity... is even more important than achieving Eternity!

“I trusted your judgment and willingly ended myself because I still had my humanity.

“Had I lost it... I dare not even imagine what I might have become.”

Su Yi said warmly, “Now that you’ve realized this, I’m sure you’ll one day get the opportunity to advance even further in your pursuit of the Grand Dao.”

As the two of them conversed, they strolled beneath the dusky skies

But when Su Yi returned to Dao-Seeking City, he did so alone.

He’d already sealed that wisp of Luo Yao’s vital source energy in her skeletal hand.

“Many thanks,” said Su Yi, taking out the rusted sheath. “I am happy to owe such a debt, and I’ll repay it gladly.”

It was his first incarnation’s heart devil who’d intervened, using the rusted sheath to seal that wisp of Luo Yao just in time.

The heart devil’s laughter emanated from within the sheath. “I hope you’ll still be able to say that when it comes time to repay me.”

”I look at favors differently from you,” said Su Yi. “In my eyes, favors are priceless, and they aren’t transactional. When I return the favor, I’ll be happy with a simple thank you.”

The heart devil fell silent. After a while, he said, “Retaining your emotions... is far more difficult than becoming a heartless deity...”

Su Yi agreed completely.

When Su Yi returned to camp, someone asked with a smile, “Care for a drink, Brother Fuyou?”

Su Yi scanned the group, then said, “Tonight, we won’t stop until we’re all drunk. Take it as a farewell banquet to all our years of fighting in the Boundless Battlefield.”

Everyone shouted their agreement.

......

The following day, by the entrance to the Boundless Battlefield.

Di E appeared out of nowhere, then gazed up at the crack-riddled dome of heaven.

Ripples of spacetime power silently spread outward, and a figure emerged.

He was dressed in blue, extraordinary and detached.

This was none other than Su Yi!

Wen Qingfeng and the others followed shortly after, emerging through the spacetime ripples one by one.

When Su Yi saw Di E in the distance, he wasn’t the least bit surprised. He wouldn’t have given up on this opportunity, either.

Wen Qingfeng and the others were all visibly on guard, but they too looked calm. Su Yi had warned them that the moment they left the Boundless Battlefield would be the most dangerous of all.

Because their enemies could set a trap and intercept them from the outside world!

Thus, Su Yi and his friends were all mentally prepared for this.

“You’re finally back.”

The seated Di E rose to his feet.

Terrifying majesty instantly swept outward, enveloping heaven and earth with a bang.

Countless dark glyphs danced in the air, revolving around Di E. He now seemed like a sovereign presiding over endless darkness.

His majesty was terrifying and imposing!

Nine-Tribulation Master Gods weren’t even remotely comparable!!

“The Dipankara Buddha and the Future Buddha aren’t here?” Su Yi looked around.

“Do you think I’m not enough to defeat you by myself?” Di E asked calmly. His imposing aura grew even more terrifying. It was as if an eternal night had descended over heaven and earth, enveloping the entire landscape.

“Rest assured that there’s no one lying in ambush here, nor is there any sort of trap,” said Di E, standing there proudly with his hands behind his back. “I disdain to involve other people.”

He spoke with boundless pride, but Su Yi’s eyes flashed with mockery. “Who was it who brought the old hunchback and the others to intercept me on my way to the God Domain? Who hid in the shadows and despicably tried to assassinate me?”

He’d almost lost his life in that ambush. Even though he’d lived on, he’d been effectively paralyzed, and he spent several months as a cripple.

How could Su Yi possibly have forgotten that grudge?

Di E’s brow furrowed. “That was then, and this is now. Back then, you weren’t worthy of being my opponent. You were prey at most. There was naturally no need to hold back.

“Oh,” said Su Yi. “Does that mean you think I’m worthy of being your opponent now?”

“It’s a sign of respect for you, isn’t it?” said Di E.

Su Yi laughed. “Should I feel honored?”

Di E could hear the mockery and disdain in his voice, but he didn’t lose his temper. Instead, he said calmly, “Since I began my cultivation, everyone I took for an enemy died by my hand. You won’t be an exception.”

He scanned Wen Qingfeng and the others. “If you’re bold enough to fight me, I’ll let them leave.”

Su Yi was stunned. For the first time, he felt as if he couldn’t quite see through Di E.

“Ridiculous. Whether we stay or go, how could we possibly need your permission?” said Wen Qingfeng with seething murderous intent.

The others laughed coldly, too.

But against their expectations, Su Yi said, “Leave. I’ll play with him.”

Wen Qingfeng and the others were stunned.

“Go on. Go to the place we agreed on earlier. I’ll come find you there,” said Su Yi, his voice calm but full of incontrovertible force.

Wen Qingfeng and the others’ expressions shifted, but in the end, they said nothing. They just left in silence.

They were old friends who could face life and death side by side. There was no need for them to say anything; they all already understood Su Yi’s attitude.

“Don’t even think about hiding or coming back to assist me. I want you to leave for real!” Su Yi’s voice emanated from afar.

Wen Qingfeng and the others exchanged glances, sighed to themselves, then dispelled the idea that had only just occurred to them.