Though time forever flowed, a few things and certain people would remain the same. Though time was a merciless destroyer, it couldn't erase them all.
While inside their own epoch on the river of time, Samsara and Saint kept quiet in this eternal scene.
There were too many familiar feelings; the things here were everything to them. The ones they loved and those who loved them were here. However, it was no longer the same; all have turned to smoke and ashes.
Both have experienced too many things. Others would spend a lifetime and wouldn't gain a sliver of experience like them.
A Saint was emotionless but so was a dark overlord. Time had corroded their heart, leaving only a single intent.
After so many years, light and darkness continued to exist; so did their battle. Perhaps today would be the long-awaited resolution.
“How can the light exist without the darkness?” Samsara made his move by taking everlasting steps forward.
One step was the grand dao of an epoch. There was no need for techniques and variations. His darkness engulfed where he stood on the river of time.
The darkness was everywhere. It didn't need to kill with the blades, just its omnipresence. It didn't matter who one might be, even the emperors would be swallowed by this darkness and erased into nothingness.
“The myriad ages will shine, as long as my heart has the light!” Despite the overwhelming darkness, Saint was still radiating with holy light.
“Boom!” With his chant, his wings and radiance soared to the sky and began to wash the darkness away from the entire epoch.
His light was also omnipresent, reaching every nook and corner with its majestic grandeur. The noise of cleansing could be heard everywhere. The darkness was receding like the tides.
Those who were strong enough to watch this scene were amazed. The guy was capable of ruling an entire epoch, a power beyond most emperors.
“Clank.” As the light was combating the darkness, Saint slashed straight at Samsara.
This slash crossed through the entire epoch. Time and space no longer mattered. Even defensive measures were useless because this sword cut through one's origin.
If successful, it would be as if Samsara has never existed in the first place. How strong he was actually didn't matter.
“Buzz.” The light illuminating the epoch became even more dazzling. Saint has made his holy mark in every inch of the land. It was as if he wanted to refine everything in order to completely eliminate any trace of Samsara.
If an emperor was a victim of this strike, then there wouldn't be anything left of him. No one would know of his tales; such a person would cease to exist.
“How can there be light without the darkness?” Samsara smiled and stood his ground while chanting. Suddenly, his body became ethereal as if he was melting into the epoch.
“Buzz.” After a series of tiny noises, the holy marks in the entire epoch had strings of darkness coming from it, no weaker than the holy light.
The light has become a host for the darkness. It wanted to use the holy light as nourishment.
“The light lives through the destruction of all!” Saint's attack continued forward through time.
“Poof!” All the holy light ignited as if wanting to illuminate the epoch. The parasitical darkness was burned and turned into smokes.
“Boom!” Now, even Saint himself was lit ablaze in a crazy manner.
The slash finally struck Samsara's origin. This would be a true death, even the most heaven-defying power wouldn't amount to anything.
“I am the light, the light is me!” Samsara roared.
After a loud explosion, the darkness disappeared but the unbelievable part was that Samsara was exuding a majestic light and halos. He seemed to be the center of the world, allowing his brilliance to shine everything.
Keep in mind that he was a dark overlord, the source of darkness for this epoch. There was no doubt about this, so when he turned himself into the light, even emperors were frightened.
“Bang!” The snow-white slash from Saint made contact with Samsara but it couldn't cut his origin due to the holy light emanating from him.
To be more exact, it was still resisting the slash, holy versus holy. The light didn't extinguish one another since they were both from the same affinity. This seemed to be an established rule.
The emperors were quite stirred. Samsara possessing this holy power was completely outside of their expectation.
“Old friend, don't forget, I once also had a glorious period. Fellow Daoist Li is right, no one is truly born evil. Those in the darkness once had light in them and my light, it used to illuminated and saved countless beings.”
Cold chill emanated through the nearby members because this was a warning to everyone. If it was true that he used to be a bastion of light, then emperors needed to think about themselves. So many of them were protecting their race and descendants while upholding justice. Even if their light didn't shine on the entire world, it definitely reached those close to them.
However, even Samsara eventually became a dark overlord and ruined an entire epoch. Who knows what made him change, but the change itself is a clear warning to all.
The knowledgeable and top emperors were affected the most. No one was born evil, then what was the story of the other still-hiding dark overlords?
Ultimately, the conclusion that anyone could eventually turn to the darkness, even your loved ones and those you respect.