Chapter 1778: Chapter 1778: Introspection without Guilt, Why Fear or Worry (2/6)

Looking at the sea of scattered bones and wreckage below, with blood flowing through the cracks on the ground like small streams, cities reduced to ghost towns, and the overpowering stench of blood filling the air.

As the old man and Master had said, no one can save everyone.

To gain something, one must lose something; and in losing, there is something gained.

Ning Chenxin recalled his Master’s teachings.

He had also said the same words as the old man.

The key is whether, after making a choice, one can accept what has been lost... or rather, face one’s own heart.

Ning Chenxin pondered this deeply at the time. While following his Second Senior Sister in battles across many regions, he would, after each victory, unify and organize the sects and aristocratic families in those realms to minimize conflicts of interest and prevent further slaughter arising from disputes.

Afterwards, Ning Chenxin spoke four words to Lu Changsheng.

His Master nodded and smiled back then.

Those words were:

"Act with a clear conscience!"

And Lu Changsheng sent him off with a phrase:

"Reflect within, bear no guilt—then why feel worry, fear, or dread?"

Thinking of this, Ning Chenxin spoke out, "Reflect within, bear no guilt—then why feel worry, fear, or dread!"

Ning Chenxin’s eyes gradually cleared, the ferocity on his face began to fade, and his tightly furrowed brow relaxed.

The nearby old man, hearing these words, was visibly moved.

He couldn’t help but nod in admiration and remarked, "No wonder that will chose him... In this path, no one is more fitting to inherit that will than this one."

Ning Chenxin’s inner turmoil slowly dissolved as he reflected within.

He did not regret his choice back then.

If given another chance, Ning Chenxin would still choose to protect those villagers.

However, after saving them, Ning Chenxin would have adopted other strategies and sought alternative ways to avert the calamity.

After all,

that other "Ning Chenxin" below had indeed used his Confucian Dao power, but failed to make use of the talismans from Junior Brother Mu, the myriad strange poisons from Wan’er, Junior Brother Fang’s formations, or Junior Sister Mo’s puppets.

If utilized wisely, combined with the soldiers stationed at the city, the situation might not have turned problematic at all.

With his Spirit Platform clear, a wisp of Confucian Dao qi naturally emerged from the top of Ning Chenxin’s head, transforming into a holy white light that coiled around him.

The books in his bamboo bookcase floated out, their pages turning with no wind, and the characters upon them seemed to come alive, leaping and dancing across the pages!

With each leap, the Dao runes within the text merged with the holy white light and then flowed back into Ning Chenxin’s body.

At this moment, Ning Chenxin,

seemed to be undergoing a baptism.

His cultivation realm advanced as well.

By now, Ning Chenxin was able to rival cultivators at the Sixth Level of Thunder Tribulation.

Watching Ning Chenxin’s breakthrough,

the old man nodded slightly, then looked toward the horizon and murmured, "But on the other side, that Bodhisattva has also been acknowledged by the will. The Son of Buddha and the Confucian scholar... I wonder what will unfold this lifetime."

"However... as the will foretold, between the Son of Buddha and the scholar, this lifetime will include the involvement of a sword cultivator and a mortal woman. There may be unforeseen variables..." The old man scratched his head in bewilderment, "Why would a sword cultivator and a mortal woman be drawn into the karmic rivalry between Buddhism and Confucianism?"

Not long after,

Ning Chenxin woke from his epiphany, and the holy white light had all returned to his body.

The old man looked at Ning Chenxin and said, "Alright, since you’ve had your enlightenment, it means you’ve passed this trial."

Ning Chenxin was taken aback. "This was the test? Why does it feel different from others’ tests?"

Others?

The old man’s face darkened. "What, you little brats have been sharing information again, haven’t you?"

Ning Chenxin rarely felt embarrassed, scratching his head with a sheepish laugh. "Senior never said we couldn’t share information."

That’s true...

Because no one had managed to share information before!

Different ruins and different spaces all had shielding arrays preventing communication. Across the entire Chaos Realm, no one had ever managed to pass messages between trials!

Even the Chaos Divine Dynasty at its peak couldn’t have pulled this off at the cultivation level of these brats!

The old man suddenly felt his blood pressure spike.

Ning Chenxin quickly said, "Senior, calm down! Don’t get angry, don’t get angry, or your remnant soul might not last much longer."

At this remark,

the old man only felt even more infuriated.

"Oh, so I should thank you, then?!"

Ning Chenxin waved his hand innocently, his face brimming with a harmless smile.

Looking at him just made the old man even angrier.

Damn it.

Which bastard taught these brats?! How did they raise such vexing little punks?!

Could they at least show him some respect?

He’d gone through a lot to preserve his consciousness in this remnant soul, alright?!

"Get out, just get out! Stop being an eyesore!" The old man waved impatiently, dismissively.

Ning Chenxin hesitated slightly before asking, "Senior, will you be the one hosting the subsequent trials?"

The old man’s body visibly froze, and the words he had been about to say got stuck in his throat like fishbones...

Ning Chenxin continued, "I don’t have any issue, but knowing my senior and junior brothers, they’re bound to be trouble. So, Senior... may I suggest you either get used to it or simply let them pass? Otherwise, I fear your remnant soul won’t be able to hold out."

At this, the old man’s remnant soul started trembling uncontrollably.

Hearing the latter half of the sentence, he immediately exploded in fury!

"What utter nonsense?! What kind of nonsense are you spouting?!"

Despite being a mere remnant soul,

to Ning Chenxin, it seemed as if the old man’s face was... "Eh, Senior’s face seems to have turned red."

To hell with this...

The old man jumped up and roared, "Let you all pass? Over my dead body! In the subsequent trials, I’ll make sure to give you little punks extra-special attention! Let’s see if you’ll still dare to disrespect my authority then! Understood?!"

Ning Chenxin wanted to say something more, but seeing the old man’s trembling remnant soul,

he thought better of it, deciding against pushing the elder further and risking him dissipating entirely...

So he merely nodded in agreement.

"Alright, if you understand, get lost already!" The old man waved his hand dismissively.

Ning Chenxin hesitated again and said, "But Senior, you brought me here, so I don’t actually know how to leave..."

The old man faltered, smacking his forehead.

Damn it.

He’d been so aggravated by these little brats he had completely forgotten that part.

With a wave of his hand, Ning Chenxin was enveloped in an invisible barrier and sent out of the space.

As for the mess left behind...

The old man had no intention of dealing with it.

Dynastic rivalries, the collisions and frictions between sects and factions...

These are things happening constantly.

For someone who had once been a part of the Chaos Divine Dynasty from countless millennia ago, this was nothing new.

He had long since grown numb to it all.

Without giving it much thought, the old man vanished from the space, too.

...

Elsewhere,

Xu Yeming and the others, upon hearing Ning Chenxin’s report, fell into deep contemplation.

Then, looking at the old man’s illusory shadow in front of them, they smiled faintly and said, "So, we heard you’re planning to make things difficult for us in the upcoming trials, Senior?"

The old man: "..."

Amynos!!!!!!

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PS: I know you’re all eager, but don’t be too hasty—this six-Chapter arc won’t take six days to complete! The backlog’s piling up, but now that I’ve cleared my schedule, it’s time to catch up.

Four more Chapters in progress.

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