After thinking about everything he had gathered, Cao Yun had a pretty good grasp on the situation. Many things were mere conjectures, but it made sense. This world was going to collapse. And if what he knew about spatial tools such as the spatial pouch he had previously used could apply to this world, it meant that everything inside was going to be destroyed. In part, this could explain Cleansed Asura's rush.
But this was not the only reason for this rush. If consuming his own soul could destroy this place, it would also kill the fake Cleansed Asura. The most probable hypothesis right now was that this fake Cleansed Asura was some kind of inner demon or some manifestation from his master's mind. Well, it could also have been some form of parasite as well. His master had traveled through many words. Hence, it was impossible to be sure of what was possible or not. However, after seeing his eyes in the visions, Cao Yun knew for sure that there was some kind of connection. And it seemed to be deep.
Considering all of that, if Cleansed Asura had been sure that destroying this world would kill this impostor, he would have probably done so earlier. Of course, a God-Monarch would balk at the idea of ending his own existence. It wasn't even about extinguishing his life, but about annihilating his very soul. Yet his master had seemed to have accepted his sad fate.
And Cao Yun had clearly felt that protecting his legacy was something very important for his master. As such, he was convinced that Cleansed Asura would have gladly shortened his already short remaining time in order to get rid of this fake one. If he had not done so earlier, maybe it was because there were ways for the fake to survive. In other words, he might have a way out of this place.
But that didn't explain why he had not left already. If Cao Yun had known about Huang Liyue's pursuit of Gui Bei, he might have been able to even piece it together a bit more. But even with all the information, he probably would not have found the entire truth of the matter.
Still, he had guessed mostly right. Based on the information he had and the feelings he had experienced through Cleansed Asura's visions, his logic was very sound. Despite that, he had in fact no way of knowing whether his guesses were right or wrong. The only thing he decided to trust wholeheartedly was that this yellow lake he had seen could be a way to wake up Huang Liyue. On everything else, he decided to stay skeptic and to assume the worst case scenario, just in case.
Thus, his plan was now clear. He had to get to this yellow lake as fast as possible while having mastered the two first levels of 'Death Verses' and enough of 'Ashen Feather Seal' so that he wouldn't get detected. Then, he had to control some of the yellow water that was able to terrify the weaker Bone Demons, that were still stronger than he was. And he had to somehow guide it into Huang Liyue's sea of consciousness, even though he had no spiritual senses.
The plan was clear.
But it was not very realistic...
That being said, there didn't seem to be any other alternative. As Cao Yun had been thinking and meditating, other tremors had shaken the entire world. It was obvious that Cleansed Asura's inner world was going to collapse now that his soul had dissipated. Cao Yun had to act and he had to act soon.
The more he thought about everything he had to take into consideration, the more and more doubts he had. After all, most of what he knew about the situation had been guessed from the visions he had received. Not only could he be mistaken, there was also a possibility that Cleansed Asura had failed to give him important pieces of information. Considering how weak he had become by the end, this was a real possibility.
Besides, Cao Yun would not gamble only his life. Since Huang Liyue remained unconscious and since the egg was... an egg precisely, none of them could fend for themselves. That also meant that Cao Yun would have to bring them with him. Indeed, if he were to find a way to leave but he had to come back in the black pagoda to fetch them, he might be too late. Even without thinking about that, he would never be able to control even a single drop of yellow water all the way to the black pagoda. That meant that he had to bring Huang Liyue with him and hope that they would not be discovered at any point. Moreover, he could not know how effective the Yellow Sorrows Water would be. What if Huang Liyue stayed unconscious for hours or even days? What if he had to use that yellow lake for several weeks straight?
As Cao Yun was pondering over the many issues, doubts were slowly invading his mind. He was not afraid per se. After all, if he did nothing he would die anyway. But he just couldn't decide on what the best course of action should be. Most of what he had surmised was fragmented. Yet, he had to take a decision and fast.
Faced with this dilemma, what had troubled him recently came back to haunt his thoughts. When he had been just a boy, he had merely followed the flow. Most of his life was eventless. Because he just loved to read and practiced new martial arts, he had stayed within the confines of his residence. Ironically, that had served him right for almost no one was able to recognize him. Only a few people in Baziyun City would maybe be able to. But in less than a year, he had still changed significantly.
After the death of his family, he had not done anything very different in fact. Because he had no real lead on the assassins he wanted to eradicate, he had also let himself be carried by the flow of the events. The important decisions he had taken had been very few indeed. Besides, they were all quite obvious. Going back into the tunnels to save his friends was not a difficult choice. And back then, he had almost all the relevant information.
But now, he had to make a life-and-death decision that would impact others, with lacking and unconfirmed intel no less.
The yellow lake was very close to the fallen palace so he would most likely meet Can Mouye, and maybe the fake Cleansed Asura as well. Against a mere Mortal Warrior demonic cultivator, Cao Yun would barely be able to flee. But against an unknown entity like the fake Cleansed Asura, Cao Yun had no idea whether he would die instantly or not. Maybe that impostor had spiritual senses. Even 'Ashen Feather Seal' might prove ineffective against him.
More and more doubts piled on. With his 'Shen Visualization', Cao Yun tried to imagine many scenarios. He was quite literally imagining every possible outcomes. However, he got hung up on the worst ones. In those, he was annihilated, then Huang Liyue and the Mountain Fenghuang egg were also destroyed. After that, he could imagine what would happen to the Hongchen Kingdom. Immediately, this thought reminded him that the fake Cleansed Asura knew about his Drop of Wrath. That was most likely what Can Mouye had wanted to get from him when he had pursued them over the Ocean of Turbid Anguish.
With the Drop of Wrath in the hands of the usurper, the young man could only imagine what amount of destructions would ensue. As a mere Mortal, Cao Yun had already reached great heights thanks to his mind cultivation and to this Drop of Wrath. If it were to fall in the hands of someone who was already a master in terms of Evil Qi, his power would probably skyrocket. Since no one on the entire Piaolu planet had crossed over the boundary of the Spirit Warrior realm, this fake Cleansed Asura might become invincible. In the end, he would be the greatest threat to humanity, not the demons, nor the demonic cultivators, but the entity pretending to be Cao Yun's master.
The idea that mankind could fall if he were to fail began to torment Cao Yun. Maybe the right thing to do was to disappear with the Drop of Wrath. He had no idea how to either get rid of it or destroy it. But if he were to sink down to the bottom of the black ocean, that should do it.
Many more dark ideas came to Cao Yun.
At any moment, he could use his mind cultivation to get rid of those, but he stubbornly didn't. Right now, Cao Yun was convinced that if he did not face those somber thoughts, he would never grow. Relying on the Chamber of Heavenly Court to make him more decisive was not the way to go. For quite some time, Cao Yun was dissatisfied with himself. And looking for an easy answer was not the solution. He had to face his current doubts and put en end to them himself, without any help from a cultivation method. That was the only way he would really grow as not only a cultivator, but as a man as well.
In his mind, only a handful of things were certain. First of all, he didn't want to die. The last words of his parents had marked him deeply, he had to live. But more than that, he had to not waste his life. On that note, he obviously wanted to avenge the parents who had told him that. But he also wanted to avenge his entire family and everyone who had died for him, like Huang'er and Feng'er. More than that, he wanted to protect and support humanity against both demons and demonic cultivators alike. Thus, protecting Huang Liyue and the egg left behind by the two Mountain Fenghuangs was an obvious decision.
What he lacked right now was not a clear goal. Before, he was indecisive because he had no lead on his family's assassins. Everything was vague. But now he knew precisely what he had to do. The problem was not the goal but the means. No matter how much he thought about it, he was unsure how to reach his goal.
But since his time as a little boy protected in the Cao residence, Cao Yun had grown quite a lot. He was not a powerless kid right now. Although he had not all the answers, he had many means to protect himself. As a 5-star Earth alchemist and 5-star Earth array formation master, he wouldn't pale in comparison with even some Mortal Warriors. Besides, he was very close to reaching this realm. In fact, he had even almost performed a Qi Manifestation. And he was in a world full of Evil Qi and Death Energy. With the Drop of Wrath, he could control incredible amounts of Evil Qi.
Besides, why wouldn't he be able to master 'Death Verses'? After all, he had mastered many things in a short amount of time. His mind cultivation was also very advanced. Cao Yun had to be sure of himself!
Cao Yun put all of his emotions aside. And he watched without any passion how he had lived his recent life. He had indeed accomplished a lot. As of now, he wasn't even eighteen and yet he was close to becoming a Mortal Warrior. An eighteen-year old 1st-grade Mortal Warrior was exceptional. Even his father Cao Guang had not performed such a feat.
Nothing was ever certain in life. To get where he was now, the young man had taken some risks. Usually, he preferred to have a well-thought plan in mind before acting though. When he had invaded the Silk Coiling Faction residence, he had prepared for a very long time beforehand. But right now, time was of the essence.
Doing nothing while planning ahead would not improve his situation. Instead, everything would become more and more uncertain. Although he had not all the cards in hand, Cao Yun had to act.
Slowly, his negative thoughts were replaced with a sense of certainty. His decision was clear. Although his plan was not perfect and relied on unconfirmed intel, the young man would implement it. If something went wrong, he just needed to act accordingly and take care of it. He was not a helpless kid anymore. In a sense, he could even call himself a half-step Mortal Warrior. There was no problem in his cultivation. With only a bit of time, he would naturally reach this realm.
It was time he started to act like one. Facing unknown odds in an hostile environment? Why not?
No matter what happened once he was there, Cao Yun would face everything fate threw in his face.
Even without advancing his mind cultivation, Cao Yun had increased his decisiveness. In that moment, he felt as though a terrible burden got lifted from his chest. He had gone through an ordeal that he had unwillingly inflicted upon himself. Self-doubt was now absent of his mind. That didn't mean that he had turned reckless though. But he was now capable to accept some higher levels of uncertainty in his planning. After all, even if he knew everything and had planned for years, things could still go south.
His best bet was to get back to the continent as soon as possible. Instead of staying here to try and improve his 'Ashen Feather Seal' and his understanding of 'Death Verses', going there first was the right move. During the travel he could still think about those and even cultivate them in his mind. Then, once there, he still would have some time. After all, the continent was vast. And in that fashion, he would save some time. Of course, he also had to take Huang Liyue and the egg with him.
Even if he wasn't entirely sure of himself, he had to try.
Besides, now that his mind was clearer, many things appeared obvious to him.
-
Quickly, Cao Yun got the remains of the 'Feng Soaring Junk' ready. They would probably only be able to sustain one short travel. Thankfully, Cao Yun's new map would avoid a great waste of that precious time.
Once he took the egg and the wounded woman out of the second floor, they visibly changed. This environment was so good while the outside world was so hostile... But he had to do it. There was no way to keep the effects of the world-tree. However, he still kept the seed with him. The black pagoda was probably about to crumble with this entire world. Hopefully, he would be able to save that seed and allow that tree to have a successor.