Chapter 414: The Ancient and Modern Recorder (25)

Inside Clear Wind Temple, Su Chen and Dongfang Yunxing sat facing each other.

As for Dongfang Yunxiao, Dongfang Yunxing had already sent him away. Some matters… were also a form of protection.

"Disciple Dongfang Yunxing congratulates Master on your return. It is truly wonderful that Master is safe and well."

Dongfang Yunxing was filled with joy. That battle of the past had been far too tragic… He had even believed that master and disciple would never meet again.

He had never expected that after countless eras, the two of them would still be able to reunite.

Su Chen smiled faintly. In truth, he had nearly ceased to exist. Yet such things naturally could not be spoken of before a disciple.

"That little fellow just now is your disciple?"

Su Chen was referring, of course, to Dongfang Yunxiao.

Dongfang Yunxing smiled. "His name is Dongfang Yunxiao. He is my disciple… just as I am Master's disciple. He has accompanied me for a very long time."

Su Chen said, "Yunxiao… Yunxing, you value that disciple highly. You even passed the Myriad Laws Dao to him. Yet you should understand that the Myriad Laws Dao cannot produce a second True Immortal."

Dongfang Yunxing nodded. "What Master says, this disciple naturally understands. A path that has already been proven cannot simultaneously support two True Immortals.

"But this disciple's current condition… though I have not completely vanished from this world, I am merely lingering on."

Dongfang Yunxing gave a bitter smile. His lower body gradually faded, revealing a broken remnant sword thrust into the ground.

The present Dongfang Yunxing was nothing more than a wisp of will attached to that remnant sword.

A True Immortal could recover completely from even a single thread of aura, yet at this moment Dongfang Yunxing's Immortal status had entirely disappeared… In other words, the current Dongfang Yunxing was already dead, yet some great divine ability had intercepted his final thread of life.

The scene caused Su Chen's eyes to freeze and his brows to knit tightly. Dongfang Yunxing's present condition was far too severe. Even he was not entirely certain what had occurred.

"Over these years, this disciple has tried to return, yet found not the slightest connection. The spacetime we once occupied shattered after that battle… The Immortal opportunities of the heavens no longer exist, and the spacetime itself is gone… Perhaps too many Immortal Kings on the Immortal path have perished. When the great tree withers, the fruits naturally vanish as well."

The words Dongfang Yunxing spoke left Su Chen silent.

That battle of the past had been far too tragic. A complete spacetime had been like an unbroken mirror. Existences such as them could travel freely within that intact mirror. Now the mirror had shattered into countless fragments, large and small, each evolving into endless possibilities.

With the deaths of the Immortal Kings, even True Immortals could no longer reclaim their former Immortal positions. A single thought had once made one a True Immortal… Perhaps only an Immortal King could encompass all the present spacetimes with a single thought, or perhaps only those above the Immortal King realm.

After a moment of silence, Su Chen said, "As long as a second True Immortal does not appear on this path, you will continue to exist. Existence means hope. Once a second True Immortal emerges on this path, you will vanish completely… When you taught him the Myriad Laws Dao, did you consider the consequences?"

Dongfang Yunxing smiled. "Does Master not feel that Yunxiao's talent is perfectly suited to the Myriad Laws Dao? With the accumulation he possesses now, he will soar in this lifetime."

Su Chen gently stirred his palm. An image of Dongfang Yunxiao's present moment appeared before the two of them. Two golden-roasted "mountain chickens" had the boy drooling with greed.

The scene caused Dongfang Yunxing's face to darken. "Damn it, unfilial disciple… He actually dared to hide two 'mountain chickens' from this master! When that brat returns, I will teach him a proper lesson!"

Dongfang Yunxing felt deeply aggrieved. He had been under enormous pressure while speaking well of Dongfang Yunxiao, yet the boy had stabbed him in the back!

"His talent is indeed excellent and highly compatible with the Myriad Laws Dao. Yet you must understand that once he becomes an Immortal, the one who disappears will be you."

Dongfang Yunxing gave an awkward smile. "Master, do not be so serious. He is this disciple's disciple. By seniority, he should still address Master as Grandmaster."

Su Chen remained unmoved.

Dongfang Yunxing sighed softly. "This disciple has already considered that question. Master should also understand this disciple's nature. Yunxiao is the successor this disciple has chosen. His talent surpasses even this disciple's own.

"This disciple knows his own dull aptitude. Reaching Immortality was possible only through Master and the destiny pearl. To leap into the ranks of True Immortal giants was already great fortune. Advancing further is utterly impossible… Master, on the other hand, will continue to progress. There will come a day when this disciple can no longer keep pace with Master's footsteps.

"But Yunxiao is different. He is born compatible with the aspects of all living beings. After enduring countless trials with me, he has a great probability of becoming a True Immortal… and even a faint hope of stepping into the realm above True Immortal. That is a scenery this disciple will never be able to witness. A mortal may wander wind and dew for an entire lifetime, yet never equal a single day of an Immortal. This disciple was fortunate enough to glimpse the scenery of the Immortals. The scenery of an Immortal King, however, must be seen by someone on this disciple's behalf."

The moment the words fell, the trees surrounding Clear Wind Temple were suddenly leveled to the ground. A terrifying aura rose, as though it would rewrite past and present.

Dongfang Yunxing cupped his fists and bowed toward Su Chen. "Master… forgive me. Please allow this disciple one moment of selfishness."

The terrifying aura gradually faded into the ends of time. For an instant, it seemed a dreadful power would erase the entire spacetime and plunge it into a new cycle.

Su Chen looked at this disciple… this disciple who had begun to rebel. His heart felt deeply unsettled. In one fleeting moment, something inside him twisted, and many words rose that he could not speak. He could not remember how long it had been since he last experienced such a feeling.

He stared coldly at Dongfang Yunxing.

Su Chen said nothing. Dongfang Yunxing did not raise his head.

"I will give you this chance… but you must make me understand that he possesses the qualifications to become a King. Otherwise, to this master it will be the hatred of having a disciple slain and a loved one lost."

Su Chen's tone was icy.

Dongfang Yunxiao was Dongfang Yunxing's family, not his. Dongfang Yunxing was his family, the disciple and fellow Daoist he valued.

Su Chen would respect Dongfang Yunxing's choice.

Yet if Dongfang Yunxiao failed to live up to Dongfang Yunxing's expectations, then to Su Chen, he would only be the enemy who had destroyed his disciple!

Dongfang Yunxing understood his master's nature well. He raised his head and smiled. "Yunxiao will certainly succeed."

Su Chen glanced in the direction where Dongfang Yunxiao was. Moments earlier, the boy had seemed somewhat pleasing to the eye. For some reason, he now looked completely displeasing, no matter how one viewed him.

"This master will remain within the long river of years to witness everything. Only when I am certain will I leave."

Dongfang Yunxing said, "He will never disappoint Master."

Su Chen's figure vanished before Dongfang Yunxing. Following the lines of karma, he arrived in this spacetime. As a True Immortal who did not belong here, he inevitably faced terrible rejection and could only observe from beyond time.

With Su Chen's disappearance, Dongfang Yunxing reached out and grabbed. Far away, tens of thousands of li distant, Dongfang Yunxiao suddenly sensed that something was wrong. At that moment, he still held a large chicken leg stuffed in his mouth, chewing with relish, until he saw the familiar face.

"Cough… Master, long time no see."

Dongfang Yunxiao looked at his unmoved master, then at the bare Clear Wind Mountain and the vanished mysterious masked man. He finished the last of the chicken leg in two or three bites, wiped his fingers on his clothes, and spoke with calm composure. "Master, what is going on? Why has Grandmaster disappeared?"

Dongfang Yunxing reached out and knocked Dongfang Yunxiao on the head, speaking in a bad temper. "You ate delicious roasted chicken yet did not share any with Grandmaster. Grandmaster has now been angered away by you!"

Dongfang Yunxiao froze for a moment, muttering in his heart, "Grandmaster is truly petty…"