Chapter 81: The World

Not far from the royal palace, a motorcade raced forward. Inside a bulletproof vehicle in the middle of the convoy, Kong Fang suddenly opened his eyes. On a small screen in the corner of his glasses, the latest news from the palace was displayed prominently.

"Liao Zhenguo and Bian Liancheng are dead so soon?! Who exactly was it? Lyu Tianhe? Jiang Wenqing? Impossible! Neither of them has that kind of strength!" Kong Fang’s eyes were filled with disbelief.

Soon, a voice rang out through his earpiece: "The person who killed Liao Zhenguo and Bian Liancheng is Su Yaoguang!"

"Su Yaoguang?" Information about the youth flashed through Kong Fang’s mind instantly.

Due to his special relationship with Xia Wuyuan, he knew much more about Su Yaoguang than anyone in the Liao family did. Yaoguang had supposedly only been cultivating for a little over a year. He was at the grandmaster tier, yet his combat power directly rivaled that of a martial paragon.

Since stepping into the Martial Dao, he had been relentlessly investigating the Rebirth Society. He had already caught the attention of the World-Saving Society and was being cultivated as a priority.

Not long ago, he, along with Yue Xingzhou and Xia Wuyuan, had destroyed the Rebirth Society's largest divine blood transit base in Dayu, drawing the ire of Zhao Sheng, the head of the divine blood project.

Ultimately, Xia Wuyuan was killed.

Yaoguang himself should have been treated as prey and died at Zhao Sheng’s hands. However, by relying on combat power that was not inferior to a martial paragon and the heavy assistance of the World-Saving Society, he had overturned the Rebirth Society. Even Zhao Sheng, the project head, had died at his hands.

Such a record of achievements was truly appalling. And now, it was no longer just a suspicion that his combat power rivaled a martial paragon; he had truly and authentically demonstrated the strength of one. And a top-tier one at that. Liao Zhenguo and Bian Liancheng, who had both died under his blade, were the best examples.

"Has his growth... truly reached this level of speed?" Kong Fang pondered.

He even thought of those fiends from the Rebirth Society. Their growth speed was similarly irrational. In one year, or even just a few months, they could walk a path that many martial artists could not finish in a lifetime.

However, since Yaoguang had gained the approval of the World-Saving Society, he likely had no connection to the powers behind the Rebirth Society. Then...

"A true genius, huh?" he said in a low voice.

𝑓𝓇𝘦ℯ𝘸𝘦𝑏𝓃𝑜𝘷ℯ𝑙.𝑐𝑜𝓂

He could not help but think of Xia Wuyuan. Kong Fang had tried to convey to Xia Wuyuan the message that he should stop investigating. Yet, in the end, Xia Wuyuan had been so stubborn that he insisted on continuing the investigation to the very end. He had even discovered some information that should never have been found.

Thinking of the despair that this news had brought even to a martial paragon like himself, and considering the other purpose behind Xia Wuyuan’s choice to die, Kong Fang remained silent for a moment and then muttered to himself, "A genius seen once in a century."

Is it useful? Compared to the truth of the world, is such a genius truly useful?

One figure after another flashed through his mind. The subservient head of the Liao family, the aloof president of the Rebirth Society, the martyred Xia Wuyuan, and the people of Dayu who had been reduced to consumables... He also thought of the words Xia Wuyuan had said to him before leaving the Grand Prosecutor's Office.

After a long while, Kong Fang slowly exhaled. "At least... he’s a bit more useful than people like us..."

Furthermore, even if they knew they would fail, they should still do something to prove that they were not lambs waiting to be slaughtered.

With that thought, Kong Fang ordered, "Stop the car! Turn back!"

"Sir?" The voice of a subordinate came through the earpiece, sounding somewhat startled.

"Turn around!" Kong Fang said directly to the driver.

Without a second of hesitation, the driver, who was an absolutely trusted confidant, turned the vehicle around and headed back toward the Grand Prosecutor's Office.

Soon, the questioning voices of those loyal to the Liao family reached his ears. "Prosecutor General Kong, what’s going on? Why did you suddenly turn around?"

Kong Fang did not respond. He simply shut off the public channel and instructed the members of his logistics team, "Keep an eye out for anyone approaching."

"Yes, Sir."

Soon, the car returned to the Grand Prosecutor's Office. As for the other vehicles, some followed him back, but the majority of them raced straight toward the palace. And then, they were ambushed.

Kong Fang did not know what their fate would be, nor did he care to know. By this time, he had arrived at the deepest part of the Grand Prosecutor's Office archive room. After passing through several security doors, he stood before a safe.

As he opened the lock of the safe, he seemed to sense something and suddenly said, "You’re already here?"

Yaoguang, wearing his combat suit and holding his sword, appeared in the archive room.

Kong Fang stepped aside and pointed to the safe he had opened. "Perhaps this is the real reason for Xia Wuyuan’s death."

"Hmm?" Yaoguang glanced at Kong Fang.

The prosecutor general, who was theoretically the sharpest blade in the hands of the royal family, had actually not set an ambush or immediately attempted a counterattack.

"He... found some things. Liao Shanhe ordered me to destroy them, but I kept them," Kong Fang said. "I didn't know if they were true, but during this period, as I continuously compared the information I possessed with the statements he made, it became likely that the truth is indeed moving toward the most cruel direction."

After assessing the situation, Yaoguang showed no fear of the martial paragon standing beside him. He walked directly to the safe and took out one of the cameras. As he turned the camera on, Xia Wuyuan appeared on the screen for the first time since their parting at the Baisheng Chemical Plant.

He looked exhausted and haggard. In the ashtray beside him sat dozens of cigarette butts. Seemingly realizing that the recording had started, he stepped toward the lens. He opened his mouth as if to speak, but ultimately, only one sentence came out: "Our world is being kept in captivity."

A look of surprise flashed in Yaoguang's eyes.

"I have searched through the history books. The Great Cataclysm was not a natural nor man-made disaster, but a historical cycle. Every eight hundred to a thousand years, a Great Cataclysm occurs. Its purpose is to forge the strongest immortal weapons and fiendish artifacts. I have found records of more than five such cataclysms."

Yaoguang knew of the Great Cataclysm. It referred to the disaster that destroyed human civilization a thousand years ago. It had been 1018 years since then. This was also the reason why the current human calendar only reached the year 1018.

"I have verified this by looking through many books. The so-called Great Cataclysm... has happened more than once," Kong Fang added from the side, his voice heavy.

Yaoguang turned his attention back to the camera. Inside, Xia Wuyuan continued his narration, but his words were disjointed and even somewhat chaotic. Clearly, his current mental state was quite poor.

"There was never any such thing as 'achieving a major breakthrough.' It was all a scam. The reason martial paragons were taken away was simply that they had reached the threshold of becoming a destabilizing factor. Thus, they were taken under the pretext of becoming disciples of the Artifact Sect, only to be secretly eliminated. One generation, two, three... Among the living martial paragons, not a single one has ever returned to their home country or birthplace."

Xia Wuyuan’s eyes appeared hollow. "Except for the Crimson Star and Snowdragon Empires."

"A scam?" Yaoguang looked at Kong Fang.

"I checked as well, but... the data we hold is not very meaningful. This is because in Dayu, and even across the entire Central Continent and Eastern Continent, it has been decades since a martial paragon was granted the opportunity to become a disciple of the Artifact Sect," Kong Fang explained. "However, some ancient texts record that martial paragons once returned from the Artifact Sect."

After saying this, he added, "There is a paradox here. It is limited to the texts; no one has actually seen a martial paragon who returned alive."

"Limited to the texts," Yaoguang muttered, looking at the camera.

Xia Wuyuan continued, "Only the Crimson Star and Snowdragon Empires are the true managers of this world. Others, even the royal families, can hardly touch the truth. If the royals are like this, what about the aristocratic families or the commoners? Everyone, the countless living beings, billions of people, are all just materials. They are materials for cultivating immortal weapons and fiendish artifacts. For the sake of those materials, every one of them can be sacrificed.

"The Great Cataclysm of this cycle should have begun during the era of upheaval a century ago. But for some reason, perhaps because the interests behind Crimson Star and Snowdragon Empires were not clearly divided, or due to some unknown variable, the Great Cataclysm has not yet occurred.

"Because the progress was interrupted, the number of martial paragons in our world is far higher than in other periods. Thus, the Rebirth Society was born to occupy the energy of all martial paragons and draw their attention...

"Our world is not a flat object surrounded by a spherical heaven, or blue planet, or Earth. Its true name is the Artifact-Nurturing World. It uses all living beings as kindling and flesh and blood as fuel to forge immortal weapons and nurture fiendish artifacts.[1]

"Everyone must unite to fight against the Crimson Star and Snowdragon Empires, and against those nobles who view all things in heaven and earth and all living beings as mere straw dogs."[2]

"But... no one believes my words. And no one is willing to believe them.

"There must be someone with more capability, a higher status, greater strength, and more prestige to achieve all of this."

Hearing this, Yaoguang caught a hint of what was coming.

"Su Yaoguang," Xia Wuyuan said. "You are a genius, a peerless genius, the most talented martial artist I have encountered in my life. A nineteen-year-old... martial paragon! If it is you, with your strength and the potential you have shown... I believe that if you only raise your voice in a call to action, you can certainly gather a group of powerful forces around you to save this world!"

Yaoguang watched the video. Xia Wuyuan in the video seemed to be looking back at him.

"But I know you won't do it. You are more cautious than I am and better at self-preservation. So, I thought about how I could make you truly investigate this to the end.

"I found the answer."

The gazes of the two men seemed to meet through the screen, crossing time, space, and even the boundary of life and death.

"A man can be deceived by his own principles.

"Only if I die will you truly put your heart into investigating this matter. Because it was you who dragged me into this incident and allowed me to see the truth of the world."

"To avoid being treated like straw dogs and to fight for the right to survive, someone is destined to bleed, and someone is destined to be sacrificed. I do not fear death, nor do I fear sacrifice. I only hope that my death can serve some small purpose and allow this footage to appear before you."

"Su Yaoguang, with great power comes great responsibility. You have the ability, and you have the—"

Click!

Yaoguang turned off the video.

"Disgusting." He made no effort to hide the indifference in his eyes. "Even in death, he still puts on this air of righteousness and resorts to moral kidnapping."

1. The "flat object surrounded by a spherical heaven" refers to the Spherical Heaven Theory, an ancient Chinese cosmology. ☜

2. Straw dog is a Chinese philosophical concept from the Tao Te Ching, referring to ceremonial effigies used in ancient rituals, symbolizing things of great value temporarily but ultimately discarded without sentiment, representing nature's indifference or things used for purpose then tossed aside. ☜