“There is no turning back from this. This will determine your future, whether it’s a happy or a sad one.” Li Qiye said.
“Neither happy nor sad, how about that?” Flame-eater asked.
“How is the current you?” Li Qiye smiled.
Flame-eater and the others thought about it.
First, was there anything positive about being a fool? No one in the world wanted this for themselves.
On the other hand, he never worried or felt sadness just like a child. This was definitely a positive.
Moreover, he was a dragon lord with three fruits and still had room to grow. Therefore, he could live without experiencing any negative emotions.
With this perspective, it seemed as if it was better to be him. The lack of sadness potentially implied happiness?
“Is anyone truly happy?” Flame-eater asked.
“In the short term, sure. In the long term, those standing at the apex might not be happy. Even the high heaven worries.” Li Qiye said.
“So being a fool is that nice, especially one that can be a dragon lord…” Ming Shi murmured.
His words made them ponder. It seemed like even the strongest cultivators still had many problems and burdens. This didn’t apply to Flame-eater Child.
“I don’t know…” Flame-eater doubted.
“Ignorance is happiness, everything can you make you smile.” Li Qiye added.
Others had no choice but to agree. Someone like Flame-eater could find amusement in anything, whether it be a treasure, a top master, a gentle breeze, or even an ant…
Conversely, cultivators only cared about power and became greedy at the sight of a treasure. They wouldn’t lose a second to glance at an ant.
Flame-eater started thinking about his choice – staying a fool or finding the past first and from that, he would be able to know which version he desired for the future.
After a long while, he looked up at Li Qiye; his muddled eyes became slightly clearer. He said: “I wish to see what I have forgotten.”
“Think about why you chose to forget.” Li Qiye struck the core of the issue.
Flame-eater shuddered. What was his reason for deliberately throwing away the past?
The youths thought about it as well, assuming that Flame-eater was not always like this.
Was the past too painful? Or could it be that it was a joyous one but alas, this happiness was fleeting? After experiencing this utmost happiness, nothing else in life could compare and this became the source of misery.
“I must remember. I am who I am, regardless of good or bad and in spite of the past or the future.” Flame-eater said; his eyes flickered with light.
Li Qiye sighed and said: “People, in the end, always seek a reason for being.”
His expression became solemn as he said: “There is no turning back after this. Whatever happens next is due to your choice and will be your destiny.”
“Yes.” Flame-eater hesitated no longer.
Li Qiye raised both hands and pulled down, causing the sky to tilt – the opening of a new dimension.
Before the youth could come to their senses, he and Flame-eater Child disappeared into this new dimension.
***
The dao flowed constantly and poured down like heavenly waterfalls. Runes manifested into reality and were always in production. Time and space were frozen here, only the grand dao was at work.
“Dao exists in the heart.” Li Qiye chanted and the dao here resonated with him.
“Dao exists in the heart.” Flame-eater repeated and tried to perform the same dao derivation.
“The heart lies in one’s thoughts, and as long as they are imperishable, so will the grand dao…” Li Qiye continued.
“The heart lies in one’s thoughts, and as long as they are imperishable, so will the grand dao…” Flame-eater could actually keep up with Li Qiye.
If anyone else were here to see this, they would be astounded beyond words. As Li Qiye chanted, he derived the grand ado and revealed unfathomable mysteries while being in tune with the rhythm of heaven and earth. This was something infinitely close to the power of creation.
During this process, the boy underwent a monumental change – akin to a true dragon being wrapped in a shell made of mud. This shell was finally cracking and he became radiant.
The maddened flames started pulsing at an increasing pace. At first, they were chaotic with various infused elements – water, rage, and unknown affinities…
These flames were devoured by him in the past and they were going wild.
“Boom!” After an explosion at the most critical moment, his metamorphosis was complete.
The chaotic flames were refined and their impurities were burned away, leaving behind the purest maddened flame.
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‘Dao exists in the heart.’ Li Qiye’s mantra echoed in his mind and created a supreme chapter.
The time came for Li Qiye to make his move – throwing a needle made out of dao laws straight at Flame-eater’s forehead.
“Break!” He shouted.
“Crack!” The boy’s sealed sixth sense crumbled.
He screamed in agony while something ran amok in his mind. Memories of old resurfaced – a bullied child filled with rage and indignation…
“Ahh!” He opened his eyes again – the muddled chaos has been incinerated in its entirety.
His purified maddened flame surged to the sky and burned everything in this dimension. Stars were reduced to ashes.
The flame engulfed him as well and didn’t spare his physical body. With that shell gone, he became a being made of flames.
The screaming continued as the flames ravaged this entire dimension. The boundless dao laws here were incinerated until nothing was left.