Chapter 83: Sunrise

The story’s ending completely surprised the boy; even if he was foolish, he still grasped something.

Old Sang paused, then suddenly said, “But he wasn’t foolish at all. On the contrary, he was exceptionally intelligent—unparalleled in the past, and unmatched in the future.”

Xu Xiaoshou remained silent.

How shameless!

“At this point, the old bald monk reappeared.”

“The boy questioned him…”

Old Sang turned to Xu Xiaoshou. “What did he ask?”

Xu Xiaoshou scratched his head and looked directly at Old Sang. “Why are your dark circles so prominent?”

Old Sang froze for a moment.

The next second, he exploded in rage.

He furiously gave the boy a rap on the head. “Be serious!”

“I *am* serious…” Xu Xiaoshou swallowed his words. He was only joking, after all; his life was on the line.

“Why did you give me the spark in such a way?”

Old Sang raised a finger. “That’s the first question.”

“The old bald monk said, ‘Because I liked it.’”

Xu Xiaoshou’s eye twitched. He longed to go up and thrash the old man, but he restrained himself. He couldn’t win, so he couldn’t act rashly!

Old Sang raised a second finger.

Xu Xiaoshou already understood that Old Sang was finding ways to make him ask questions. Naturally, he no longer saw himself as the boy in the story but instead posed his own queries:

“Didn’t that ugly, bald old monk consider that others might not want such a painful opportunity?”

Old Sang’s lips twitched. With only two of them present, who was Xu Xiaoshou indirectly scolding? He huffily replied, “Remove those superfluous adjectives, young man!”

“The old bald monk said that those content to lag behind and achieve nothing should remain in the mundane world. Only those with an ambitious spirit will ever appear in the Holy Palace.”

“Your question, in fact, already has an answer.”

Just as Xu Xiaoshou was about to retort, Old Sang cut him off decisively:

“The boy thought it was indeed true. Given another chance, perhaps he would still choose to swallow the spark, but the mere thought of such torment…”

“Without a desire for revenge, he likely wouldn’t have endured the process of his Innate physical body being crippled, rebuilding it, and then breaking through to the Grandmaster realm.”

Old Sang gave Xu Xiaoshou a meaningful glance. Xu Xiaoshou’s mind, however, was filled with only three question marks.

What did he mean?

He wouldn’t let me speak, wouldn’t let me ask questions, and was even forcing thoughts into my head?

I suspect you’re trying to brainwash me, and the evidence is conclusive!

But I had to admit, there was some truth to that old man’s last statement…

Wait…

No!

I was almost brainwashed!

Xu Xiaoshou glared, his eyes conveying his protest.

“One last question,” Old Sang said, raising his third finger.

Last?

This calls for a serious question…

Xu Xiaoshou pondered for a moment, then mused, “Who exactly is that masked person?” His eyes burned with curiosity.

Veins bulged on Old Sang’s forehead. He was on the verge of losing his temper. This kid is truly infuriating! He suddenly felt as though he had chosen the wrong person.

“Be serious!”

“Oh,” Xu Xiaoshou replied, now serious. “Why did you choose me?”

Old Sang stroked his sparse eyebrows and nodded contentedly. “Now *that’s* a question a normal person would ask.”

His expression turned solemn. He said, “I must tell you the truth: while ‘Blazing Sky Incineration’ is renowned for crippling an Innate physical body… the unmentioned death toll was in the hundreds!”

Xu Xiaoshou’s expression suggested ‘I knew it,’ which was unexpected by Old Sang. He continued:

“Before you, I tried with over a dozen individuals, all geniuses from outside the Spirit Palace. Without exception, they all perished.”

“Initially, I didn’t have much hope for you either. I was merely experimenting, at worst… it would just be another life lost.”

He glanced at Xu Xiaoshou, noticing that the young man remained remarkably composed, wondering if he was merely faking it.

Xu Xiaoshou, of course, wasn’t faking it; he had long grown accustomed to Old Sang’s demeanor. It would have been truly surprising if Old Sang had cared about a mere ‘ant’ he had never met. For this old man to speak so candidly was already quite remarkable.

Old Sang said, “Returning to the earlier story, the boy asked the same question, but the old bald monk’s answer had a few more words.” He seemed to be imitating the tone of someone from his memory, stating profoundly:

“This world is a cage, and everyone within it seeks freedom.

“People begin in obscurity; when they are insignificant, no one can discern their light.

“When you strive to a certain degree, your light will finally be discovered by others, but at that point, you still won’t possess true freedom.

“You are merely a pawn, a tool for others to pursue their own freedom. Your life and death are not within your control, but rather in the hands of your discoverer.”

He pointed at Xu Xiaoshou. “This is you right now.”

Xu Xiaoshou understood. Old Sang continued:

“You continue to strive, finally shedding your identity as a pawn, becoming eligible to pursue freedom, and cultivating a group of pawns who successfully pry open the cage’s lock.

“You step out of your former world, see the sky beyond the cage, and believe this to be freedom. Yet the very next second, you discover that this realm is, in fact, an even larger cage.”

He pointed at Swan Lake. The lake’s surface was smooth as a mirror, reflecting a blue sky and white clouds, but at this moment, it took on an unusual significance.

“You are still confined. How do you break free?”

Xu Xiaoshou squatted down, then stood up, throwing a pebble into the lake. Instantly, the reflection of the sky shattered into fragments. “Didn’t that break it?”

Old Sang was speechless.

Control yourself! You *must* control yourself!

“Alternatively, you emerge, look up, and see the *real* sky…” Old Sang forcibly tilted Xu Xiaoshou’s stubborn head upwards. “At that point, how do you break the sky you see?”

“Even if you break *that*, you’ll only find another layer of sky.”

Xu Xiaoshou was exasperated, barely managing to say, “No nesting dolls!”

Old Sang paused, perplexed. “What does that mean?”

“Oh, nothing,” Xu Xiaoshou said, turning his head back. Puzzled, he added, “So, after all this talk, what exactly are you trying to convey?”

Old Sang placed a hand firmly on his head and slowly stated, “This world is truly this treacherous. When you leave the Spirit Palace, you will see for yourself.”

“Not every discoverer can make good use of you. You might end up like some of the dead pawns, just like those I tried before you.”

“Therefore, before you possess absolute power, diligently fulfill your role as a pawn.”

“At least ensure that the discoverer believes you are *only* a pawn!”

Xu Xiaoshou was stunned. Honestly, he understood some of it, yet couldn’t fully grasp the rest. He had long experienced the world’s treachery, but to hear that it was treacherous in such a nested, infinite way—that was something he had never encountered.

“Don’t worry,” he said seriously. “I will break through these cages, one by one.”

Old Sang smiled, the wrinkles on his face merging into what looked like a blooming flower. “Back then, I said the very same thing…”

Xu Xiaoshou looked up. “So *you* were that boy, and that ugly, bald old monk was your master?”

Smack!

Another smack.

“What ‘ugly, bald old monk’?!”

“*He* was your grand-master!”

Xu Xiaoshou blinked in confusion.

“At the end of the story, the old bald monk said, ‘The first lesson of apprenticeship has been taught to you. Are you willing to become my disciple?’”

Old Sang emerged from his reminiscent expression and repeated, “You, are you willing to become my disciple?”

“Will you be good to me?” Xu Xiaoshou instantly looked pitiful.

…

At a time like this, he was still fooling around!

Before Old Sang’s angry retort could escape his lips, he saw the boy before him prostrate himself on the ground.

“Master, I humbly bow before you!”

Perhaps Xu Xiaoshou had harbored some resentment before this, but after learning about the ‘no breaking, no establishing’ principle of ‘Blazing Sky Incineration,’ his minor grievances had completely vanished. Furthermore, if Old Sang hadn’t intervened tonight, Xu Xiaoshou would likely have been either abandoned directly by Ye Xiaotian or abducted by the masked individual. While Old Sang was undoubtedly reclusive and unnerving, the genuine concern he showed during Xu Xiaoshou’s rescue could not have been faked. Even if he were to concede ten thousand steps, Xu Xiaoshou didn’t believe he had any other choice after the other party had laid everything out to this extent.

He waited for a long time without a reply. When he finally looked up, he saw the old face beneath the straw hat crinkled, with what appeared to be tears welling in his eyes.

Xu Xiaoshou was momentarily lost in thought. For at that moment, behind the old man, the morning sun was just rising, and purple energy emanated from the east. A faint ray of light descended, and the old man and the young boy remained silent.

Swan Lake awoke in the morning light. The wind swept through, carrying the sounds of cicadas chirping and geese honking, passing over the cracked earth and rustling the broken willows.

In that desolate place, a dream began to stir.

P.S.:

I’ve noticed that some readers earlier utterly detested Old Sang’s character, even wishing to devour his flesh and drink his blood… And that puts my mind at ease. This indicates that I’ve done a decent job in portraying the image and personality of this old man with prominent dark circles and a straw hat (a little self-congratulatory, if I may say so myself). Honestly, I initially wanted to reply in the chapter comments and explain a few things, but then I thought, ‘there’s no need.’ Just like a long time ago, some readers complained, asking why people were killed within the Spirit Palace without the elders noticing, claiming it lacked logic and prompting them to abandon the book! Well, those who have read this far should understand. Old Sang has essentially conveyed what I wanted to say. With different perspectives come naturally different approaches to life and events. All I can say is, keep reading. Just as there was the sunset in the previous chapter, naturally there is now a sunrise. That’s how it is.

Lastly…

There’s a reason for this aside, of course, and it’s not just to babble a few sentences.

The next recommendation slot is coming…

Please, I need recommendation votes!!!

I want to move up, sob sob sob~