"Young man, the chaos has enveloped lands beyond just the Long Kingdom." Zhou Lei's smile turned rigid, his lips twitching.
"Then Zhou Lei, what is your agenda for coming here?" asked Feng Hui.
Narrowing his eyes, Feng Hui discerned the old man's use of innumerable treasures to increase his ceasing lifespan, living far beyond the standard Transcendent.
However, the old Transcendent's soul was akin to a flickering light bulb. Regarding the harsh cultivation world, the advancement in realms was nothing more than a form of prolonging; death forever loomed around the corner.
"Are you here to stop me as well?" Freeing himself, Chan Aiguo gnashed his teeth. During his rule over the kingdom, he had not addressed much concern over his new subjects. In the end, his own cultivation was the most important.
If one was strong enough, their words would become the law. With its emperor neglecting the citizens, the rich, powerful families became even stronger, while the average household was forced to return to the slums.
The majority of the Long Kingdom's top clans were joyful over their new ruler, who allowed them to grow without limit. However, the Prime Minister's estate dreaded the change.
Losing the enormous tree that had allowed them to be unfettered, Zhi Ruo's adoptive father now had a head full of white hair. The former Prime Minister was stripped of his title, and he was forced to hide with the Secret Legion.
Ignoring the hydra-attired emperor's roars, Zhou Lei shook his head, "Your power interested me. I promise that I come bearing no evil intentions."
While Feng Hui was thinking, a sudden, melodic voice reassured him.
"Grandpa Zhou?" Zhi Ruo cried out.
When Zhou Lei heard the excited call, his senses shifted toward the scarlet-robed beauty. Creasing his brows, he eventually laughed, "Little Zhi?"
"Mn!" Jumping up, Zhi Ruo nodded.
"Hm." Smiling, Feng Hui watched on. Since Zhi Ruo was on great terms with the old man, he did not require any more approval.
"Phew." As if the pressure was never there, Zhou Lei felt the child's killing intent retreating. Up until now, he had not felt such incredible danger for thousands of years.
"Could it be?" Shaking his head, Zhou Lei had trouble believing that a child was at the Immortal realm of legend.
Chuckling, Zhou Lei praised, "Little Zhi, you've done well to reach the Transcendent stage."
Back then, Zhou Lei had noticed the little girl's overflowing talent, but her true cultivation speed shocked him even more.
"It's all thanks to Grandpa Zhou!" giggled Zhi Ruo. If this mysterious old man had not saved her all those years ago, she wouldn't have been able to return to Feng Hui's side.
Recalling the sinister mercenary group that had kidnapped the Prime Minister's treasured daughter, Zhou Lei sighed, "No, it was due to your own hard work."
Despite his efforts to sever himself from the mundane world, Zhou Lei had not been able to watch the talented scarlet-robed girl lose her life in such a meaningless fashion. Since his beliefs weren't stable, the Immortal realm has eluded him for millenniums, drawing him closer and closer to the end of his lifespan.
"Hmph. You all think of me as some clown. Isn't that right, Fengge?" Being overlooked, Chan Aiguo walked over and extended his hand; his palm was tanned and callused.
"Now, even an old man dares to ignore Zhen?" Caressing Zhou Lei's throat, Chan Aiguo grinned.
The expression of Zhou Lei was ugly. For millenniums, no one had dared to treat him like this. Feeling the malicious crimson light crawling around him, he sneered.
"To be forgotten, it seems that this old man has not shown himself for far too long." Zhou Lei chuckled. Perhaps, the route of a spectator was incorrect. Thousands of years had passed to no avail. If he had to live against his wishes, what was the point of being a cultivator?
The crimson light continued to wrap around Zhou Lei's thin body, covering his skin from top to bottom.
"Grandpa Zhou!" Zhi Ruo rushed toward the shackled old man, but she stopped soon after. Flabbergasted, she thought, "Powerful."
Interested, Feng Hui rested his hand on Zhi Ruo's soft shoulders, the beautiful scarlet dress emphasizing her enchanting neckline.
Like pudding, Zhi Ruo fell into the pair of broad arms, "I'm tired, Feng Hui."
"…" Reassuring the little girl, Feng Hui sighed, "From now on, I won't let anything wrong us."
"Brat, if you had cultivated for another thousand years, perhaps you would have stood a chance." The flesh of Zhou Lei was burning. However, in an instant, everything stopped.
That same power flashed brightly. Zhou Lei chuckled as the hydra-attired emperor froze like a block of ice. Redirecting the laws, he made Chan Aiguo experience his own evil power.
"What?" Shivering, Chan Aiguo became fearful.
"You have to show mercy!" Chan Aiguo's once tender skin solidified at a frightening rate. In this world, he still had too much to achieve; his dreams couldn't end here.
Furthermore, his loss would be to some random old man? Even in his grave, Chan Aiguo would not be able to rest! If he had lost to Long Fengge, the most talented cultivator in the Eastern World, it would not have been a shameful death.
"Mercy?" Zhou Lei glowingly laughed. "Did you show me mercy?"
"Brat, I'm just letting you experience the same power that you had in store for the rest of us."
Chan Aiguo looked at the cruel old man before turning around to see the beautiful couple. Catching them peacefully smiling while he was about to depart to meet Yama, he roared, "You two planned this all along! I show Sister Ruo grace, and you two team up against me!"
"Fengge, what do you have against me! Why must you always stand in my way?" Chan Aiguo's skin had turned to blood jade up until his neck; his vision started to dim.
Zhi Ruo saw a glistening droplet within the devil's blackened eyes. Shaking her head, she stated, "Ai. You have no one but yourself to blame, Chan Aiguo."
The agonizing mental pain was far greater than his flesh burning. Chan Aiguo's heart was filled with only pain and unwillingness.
This world was vast and boundless.
"It can't end here." The single glistening tear trickled down Chan Aiguo's handsome face. How many people would remember him after his death?
Perhaps, Chan Aiguo's name would disappear in a few centuries. After all, as an emperor, he had been neglectful of the commoners. The history books would chastise him.
The thinking of Chan Aiguo became slower and slower. In his depleting gaze, apart from a shadowy figure, there was nothing left.
Suddenly, a calm voice resounded amidst Chan Aiguo's dark thoughts, the light tone springing him awake.
"I won't forget the softhearted, hardworking scholar," stated Feng Hui.
"Ah… that's right," thought Chan Aiguo. Long Fengge has always been like this. From the start, there wasn't a need for him to make comparisons between them. The two of them weren't on the same path to begin with.
Their goals were completely different. A single wrong decision had altered Chan Aiguo's life.
"Thanks, Fengge… you evil bastard." Chan Aiguo muttered. Even at the end, Feng Hui had made him feel guilty for everything.
Along with his guilt, his thinking completely stopped. All that was left was a blood jade sculpture that no longer moved. An inanimate object that stood there silently looking afar, admiring the beautiful world.
It was a fitting end for the scholar. The sight that returned Chan Aiguo to his roots.