From the end of the world

Chapter 709 The End
A look of surprise appeared on Shan Liangyi's face.

He turned his head and looked at the deep yellow wheel behind him. The Black Tortoise Seed on the wheel was trembling violently for some reason, seemingly moving uncontrollably towards the Vermilion Bird Seed that the wheel was simulating. The simulated Vermilion Bird Seed, meanwhile, seemed to be subjected to an invisible disturbance, reminiscent of a candle flame flickering in a storm, its illusory form flashing incessantly.

Most likely, it was due to the influence of the deep yellow wheel's state that the state of the Mountain Yin-Yang itself began to waver. The magical power fluctuations that were originally so immense that I couldn't perceive them were now faintly perceptible to me. Obviously, it wasn't because my perception had become stronger, but because it couldn't stably maintain the level after the third gate.

This phenomenon itself is also very unstable. In a short instant, at most one-tenth of the interval will become an extremely vague, hallucination-like state that I can perceive. The influence of the Vermilion Bird Seed on my side also wavered to the same extent. Thanks to the super-performance brought by the blessing of the small bowl, I miraculously seized this hard-won opportunity and burst into a raging fire.

Flames shot towards Shan Liangyi's face, and at the same time, I increased the distance between us.

After retreating only a few hundred meters, the Vermilion Bird Seed's unruly behavior returned to its peak, and I was once again unable to move, forced to cease all action. The fiery cloud from the explosion dissipated in the distance, and Shan Liangyi stood unharmed in the air.

He glanced at me first, then looked at the deep yellow wheel behind him again, and pondered, "Xuanwu... really did me a 'good deed'."

"I thought that after wasting so much time at the Great Completion stage, he was just an incompetent person. I never expected that he could make such a change to the Xuanwu Seed... He must have greatly enhanced the Xuanwu Seed's tendency to counteract other elements by using alchemy and his deep understanding of seeds."

"It seems he also plans to use the mutual restraint relationship of the five elements to devour other seeds... I see, so this is the change he made for this purpose? To use the powerful force of mutual restraint to forcibly seize other seeds, suppress them, and take them as his own? Among all the successors of the Yin-Yang lineage, he is unique in being able to think of this. It seems I must revise my evaluation of him."

I also observed what specific problems had occurred in the two aspects of the mountain.

The Black Tortoise, a naval warrior who sought to devour the Vermilion Bird's descendant throughout his long life, left behind a Black Tortoise Seed with a strong tendency to devour the Vermilion Bird Seed. The Mountain Yin-Yang mechanic, capable of simulating the Vermilion Bird Seed on a deep yellow wheel to achieve a five-element cycle, clearly emphasizes the generating relationship of the five elements. Therefore, the Black Tortoise Seed, which emphasizes the restraining relationship, becomes a discordant factor.

If the Vermilion Bird Seed were a real, physical seed, there might be no need to worry about this influence; or if this influence came from the outside, the Mountain and Yin-Yang system itself would certainly have a way to prevent it. However, because the Vermilion Bird Seed is a simulated, illusory object, it has become the weakest link in the Mountain and Yin-Yang system's five-element cycle; and because the influence comes from within, the Mountain and Yin-Yang system itself is somewhat unable to defend against it.

So, given that the two states of the mountain are in this state, do I have a chance of winning?
To say that there is "something" is really a stretch.

Since I can vaguely sense the fluctuations of Shan Liangyi's magical power, it means that he has at least fallen to a level where my power can influence him. However, relying on this condition to fight Shan Liangyi, I would be lucky to injure him even once in a hundred attempts. As for the odds of winning, I would consider it shameless boasting to claim that I could win once in ten thousand attempts. The premise is that he must maintain this state of being able to be influenced throughout the entire fight. In reality, this state flickers intermittently, and even the flickering can be extinguished at any time.

Hope was practically zero. Even so, this might be my last chance in my career to attack the Mountain Ryougi. It was either fight or die. This once-in-a-lifetime miracle couldn't be missed. As this thought flashed through my mind, the Vermilion Bird Seed wavered almost imperceptibly. I seized the opportunity and charged towards the Mountain Ryougi without hesitation.

Shan Liangyi glanced at me, and the violent tremors of the Xuanwu Seed on the deep yellow wheel suddenly stopped. A large amount of black water-like energy surged around my body, pressing down on me like the immense pressure of the deep sea, making it impossible for me to move. The opportunity for battle was effectively over. The simulated Vermilion Bird Seed reappeared stably on the deep yellow wheel, and Shan Liangyi's own magical energy fluctuations once again became completely imperceptible.

He seemed to have easily anchored himself in the realm beyond the third door.

"Very well, I never intended to retrieve the Vermilion Bird Seed at this stage anyway. Since the interaction of the Five Elements is unstable, it's even less appropriate to rush into retrieving it." He uttered a strange statement.

Were there no plans to reclaim the Vermilion Bird Seed in the first place? Why is that?
Shan Liangyi clearly had no intention of answering my question. He turned around, then turned back to me and said, "I'll keep my seed with you for now, Suzaku. I'll come back to collect it soon."

"Also, if you have the chance, please pass on a message to the old Fist God: 'Our Shan Liangyi will soon pay you a visit and avenge the humiliation of that year.'"

After he finished speaking, the space around his body suddenly expanded and contracted, as if an invisible monster had swallowed him whole, and he himself disappeared.

The two aspects of the mountain vanished right before my eyes.
-
The massive city barrier disappeared completely not long after. After a short while, I dragged my badly injured body back to the Luoshan headquarters.

"Severely injured body" is just a figure of speech. You can't tell from my appearance that I'm seriously injured, or even from my soul that I'm damaged. What's truly injured is my spirit, and the damage is almost the same as when I finished fighting Xuanming not long ago; it's practically death. I even wonder if I could just lie down somewhere, close my eyes, and never wake up again.

At first, I couldn't quite understand why Shan Liangyi would let me go. It couldn't be that he was so wary of even a near-zero probability of failure that he hurriedly ran away from me—even Mingzhuo and Huangquan wouldn't go to such lengths.

Moreover, the aura emanating from Shan Liangyi doesn't quite align with that cautious approach... It's not that he lacks caution; on the contrary, when facing extremely dangerous prey, he would likely strive for absolute certainty. This is evidenced by his decision to only appear at crucial moments. However, if it were Mingzhuo or Huangquan, they wouldn't choose such an extremely dangerous prey in the first place.

After much thought, there may only be one answer: the two elements of the mountain are not yet ready to digest the seed of the Vermilion Bird.

His wish is to reach the realm of manifestation, while I am a pre-existing manifestation. The Vermilion Bird Seed recovered from me likely possesses immense value sufficient to fulfill his wish. Therefore, he will inevitably want to devour me in the most foolproof way, rather than acting hastily now that he has just regained all his power in this life. If something goes wrong during the "pre-meal phase," wasting this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, there would truly be no way to seek justice.

Of course, if that were all, he might change his mind at the last minute. With his desired possession so close, he might succumb to impulse and prey on me first. But the unusual movement of the Xuanwu Seed might have completely dispelled his idea. It seems I really should thank the Naval Xuanwu; this old adversary might have inadvertently saved my life.

Shan Liangyi might even worry that I might deliberately commit suicide at this moment, allowing the Vermilion Bird Seed to return prematurely—normally, no one would do such a foolish thing, but if he tries to capture me alive and really turns me into fish on a chopping board, things could get unpredictable.

These are all just my hindsight speculations. Whether the actual answer is as described can only be determined by questioning Shan Liangyi face-to-face in the future. As for whether Shan Liangyi is willing to answer, that's another matter entirely. However, I doubt I'll have the energy to ask any questions then; I'll only be able to think of ways to overcome this despairing obstacle.

The actions of the Water Master Xuanwu may have caused him some trouble, but that was only temporary. The Mountain Yin and Yang that appears before me next time will certainly not reveal such a small flaw. I am far too inadequate to face the extraordinary Great Impermanence who pushes open the third door.

The reason Shan Liangyi let me go so readily is likely because, in his eyes, taking the Vermilion Bird Seed from me, anytime and anywhere, would be as effortless as taking candy from a baby. Considering his profound mastery of spacetime power and his influence over the Vermilion Bird Seed, this is probably not a metaphor, but an undeniable fact.

As I pondered my next move, I entered my residence at the Luoshan headquarters. I briefly sensed my surroundings, then moved in one direction. Soon, I spotted a small figure in the corridor.

Little Bowl was walking towards me. When she saw me, she immediately showed a joyful expression and said, "Brother Zhuang Cheng, you're back!"

“I’m back,” I said.

Xiao Wan ran up to me quickly, seemingly wanting to say something to welcome me, but then her eyes changed, clearly noticing the serious injuries I had sustained.

(End of this chapter)