Chapter 1423: Who Is Truly Decadent!

In the primordial chaos, as the universe began, the two sat discussing the Dao. Tu Xin skillfully poured himself a cup. "To be honest, I truly admire you old beings."

"Though seemingly decadent, you still possess astonishing qualities. The three previous wars, and this battle with you, have been eye-openingly impressive. Every one of you is a hero, lacking neither wisdom nor valor."

"Yet, in your eyes, we are still decadent, and we deserve to die," Di Zun said with a faint smile.

Tu Xin raised a cup of wine and added, "Nevertheless, I must still thank you, fellow Daoist, for granting me this opportunity to witness the universe's most exquisite splendor in advance, even if it was merely a false beauty, not to be taken as real."

Both Tu Xin and Di Zun already knew that their true battle was inevitable.

"For this performance venue, there's no need to thank me. You and I are merely listening; I am not the one playing, but the evil gods outside," Di Zun's voice became calm.

"This is a farewell drink. After this cup, I will enter the singularity next. If I survive, we will have our battle." He continued to pour the wine with a smile, as if chatting casually with a long-lost friend.

"After this cup, will it be a matter of life and death?" Di Zun also raised his cup high. "You clearly still have a lot of energy and could last much longer. Delaying a few more times would give you a higher chance of success."

"No," Tu Xin smiled, also raising his cup high. "If I delay too long, my energy level will drop too much. Before I can enter and comprehend a way to escape this singularity, you might suddenly strike and kill me."

"How could that be? My miracle martial arts aren't perfected yet. Right now, it should be you killing me," Di Zun said honestly.

"Who knows?" Tu Xin laughed; he remained impenetrable, always responding with the perfect solution.

The two gently clinked their cups, with no intention of fighting.

In the distance, the people of the Longevity Dao Palace held their breath, watching the two towering, great beings in the chaos.

"It's like the final war of the Three Clans in the old days. Before we started, all three sides sat down to drink. After all, that battle was terrifying, and we stood at the peak, having fought countless times. Everyone greatly respected each other, a feeling of mutual admiration. How many people like us can there be in an era?" Chi Ji suddenly spoke. "Before dealing the fatal blow, everyone's heart is complex."

"If only our positions hadn't been different back then," Rong Cheng also fell silent for a moment.

All the onlookers knew that while the two seemed to be chatting, they were actually furiously calculating the newly acquired data, becoming increasingly familiar with the singularity.

They were already incredibly formidable.

For ordinary people, even facing such terrifying amounts of singularity data, it would be difficult to deduce it easily, but their wisdom had long surpassed the limits of the universe, past and present.

It was unknown whether there truly were prehistoric eras, but this was definitely a first for the current era!

"The era, it truly is progressing."

Tu Xin's voice trailed off as he watched the thirty-first great collapse, which had begun its regression. The speed of regression and collapse was now increasingly fast and terrifying. "You, sir, obstruct the progress of the era, preventing the old era from decaying. This only brings forth soil of corruption, not the flower of hope for advancement."

"I know you pave the way for future generations, and in your eyes, we, the damned, should all enter our coffins with the era. The future already belongs to you newcomers."

Di Zun knew that Tu Xin was indeed a pure person.

Such a person, for the future of his race and the universe, was determined to stop at nothing, even sacrificing his life, to overthrow the old rule...

He was a martyr for rationality, disregarding all else, just like Yi Mang and Dao Changsheng in their time—great heroes in the long river of history. Xu Zhi always held them in respect.

However, despite Xu Zhi's admiration, he now stood on the opposing side. In a sense, he truly was decaying, perhaps even a parasite of the universe, an obstruction to the grand trend.

"Do you know?" Di Zun paused, looking towards the chaotic singularity in the distance. "You say I am decadent and aloof, and perhaps that is true; I have obstructed everything. But do you know? I have seen such a sight more than once."

"More than once?" Tu Xin looked at the man before him, then towards the distant chaotic singularity.

Di Zun turned his head and smiled faintly. "It is precisely because I have seen too much that, while my talents in other areas may not match yours, I understand more about the trajectory of civilization and historical development than you do."

"You say I am decadent? Then, what is decay?"

Di Zun drank a cup himself.

"The myriad worlds, by deviating from the fixed grand trend, can avoid the fixed cosmic cycle, escape the destiny you perceive, and your future... allowing new waves to emerge in the era."

"You say I am decadent, but why can't I say you are decadent? You follow the predetermined path, heading towards a future of destined decay, embracing your fated demise."

"Perhaps, in the future, you too will be abandoned by the era, just like us?"

Di Zun said softly, clinking cups with the leader of this new-era life form, "Tu Xin, tell me, is that truly what you hope for?"

"What I hope for?"

Tu Xin fell silent, seemingly wavering.

The onlookers in the distance felt their scalps tingle; these few short sentences seemed to contain unimaginable ancient, prehistoric truths.

Cycle?

Does that mean similar eras have occurred more than once?

So, what exactly happened in the prehistoric universe?

Could it be that the universe has cycled countless times in this manner?

Each era lasting tens of billions of years, repeating over and over, trapped in some eternally fixed cycle?

Therefore, Di Zun wants to change it? He desires a different future, to leap out of the cosmic cycle of destiny?

Are every great collapse and great explosion similar flowers, similar trajectories, leading to the same end?

"Who is decaying?"

Di Zun smiled, raising his cup high, and said, "Decay, this is inherently a ridiculous paradox."

Tu Xin was silent for a moment, then still wearing a pure smile, he raised his cup. "You cannot sway me. I don't know if what you say is true or false, but I only believe in myself."

"Cheers."

Di Zun stopped speaking, smiling as he raised his cup high.

"Cheers."

Tu Xin also smiled, his smile exceedingly brilliant and pure. Even the Tu Xin of the distant future, living far into the eons, would never again witness this scene before him.

He would remember this moment forever.

"It begins," Tu Xin said, looking at the singularity's regression in the distance. "To enter the singularity, you shouldn't have a third method this time to prevent me from facing you directly, should you?"

"No, you truly are a monster."

Di Zun shivered slightly, slowly stood up, and slowly walked towards the singularity with him. "It's understandable that you follow destiny's path, but I only hope you remember one thing."

Tu Xin did not hesitate at all this time. The moment the singularity condensed and was still collapsing back, he leaped fiercely into it, unable to resist asking, "What one thing?"

"Humanity will decay if it trusts in fate's momentum; humanity will flourish if it trusts in itself."

"Ultimately, who among us is decaying? And who can truly say?"

The moment Tu Xin heard that, he had already leaped fiercely into the singularity, as if plunging into an endless abyss. From that point, life and death were a single gamble, yet he couldn't help but murmur the words before him:

Who among us is decaying?

"Seemingly the true sound of the Grand Dao, but it's merely the universe's lip-syncing!"

Tu Xin also grew cold, reappearing before him. "Fellow Daoist, the two walls you placed before you have both been shattered. You can only fight me in person!"

Perhaps, Tu Xin had not anticipated this:

He also knew it was unstoppable, even though he personally disliked conflict.

Tu Xin smiled; he seemed very satisfied, looking at the chaotic explosion in the distance, spreading outwards.

He had deduced everything by following Di Zun's lead, yet he hadn't realized that the truth was the opposite: Di Zun was actually following behind the path he had opened.

Destiny is always so wondrous.

Di Zun remained silent, sitting down and taking a sip.

Having endured the singularity, things began to calm down, and the matter from the great explosion diffused.

The True Sound of the Grand Dao.

With a gentle wave of his hand, a tea table appeared before him.

Tu Xin, tall and imposing, looked at the fungal-like figure before him. Skillfully, he picked up the wine pot and poured a cup for Di Zun. "Wine made from chaotic matter, tasted for the first time in my life, a rare treat in this world."

However, how could Tu Xin have anticipated?

In his eyes, the other party clearly already knew how to evade!

By telling the other party, he would instead give the enemy a chance at life and a means to defeat him.

It was omnipresent here, and this was already the thirtieth time.

"A melody that breaks the heart, where in the world can one find a kindred spirit?" As a new great explosion occurred, Di Zun reappeared, his expression now serene.

What more could Xu Zhi say?

The light stirred by the chaotic particles, accompanied by crisp, clinking sounds, seemed like the most exquisite musical note in all the heavens and earth.

Because a plan had already been set, whether it succeeded was no longer within his control.