Grasping Evil

The Promise of The Next Life

The cultivation world was cold and selfish. However, at the same time, there was warmth, righteousness and touching moments.

“Senior, you just need to endure some pain. I shall now begin to wash away the evil seal on you!”

Ning Fan touched the ground with the tip of his toe and soared into the air. He then landed on the back of the giant beast.

He squatted down and touched the blood-red mark on the giant beast’s back. With just a single touch, the seal gave out a horrible heat which severely scalded Ning Fan’s finger.

The power of this evil seal was even more terrifying than what Ning Fan had initially imagined.

Fortunately, this injury was not worrisome at all. A trace of black starlight revolved around his finger. With just a little starlight, his burnt finger was completely healed and became good as new.

The Black Star Healing Technique really deserved its esteemed reputation. With this technique, Ning Fan was just like a saint-level healer.  Turning a set of white skeletons back into a lively man would be as easy as flipping a hand to him.

“The evil seal is the punishment of the great True Spirit Races to a sinful demon. Since the demon race has lost their ‘spirit’, a large number of True Spirit demons were unable to give birth to young demons with royal blood. Only a minority of the True Spirit Races still have royal blood running through their veins. This evil seal can only be planted and lifted by those with royal blood. It means that whoever gets planted with this evil seal by the great True Spirit Races, they would need to follow their each and every order. Otherwise, no one would lift the seal for you and there would be no way you can enter Samsara. The only thing you will taste for the rest of your life is eternal suffering…”

Lu Wu’s eyes turned grim and his tone was filled with fury. It was imaginable how humiliating it was when the True Spirit Royal Clan planted the evil seal on him by force.

“If you can’t break this evil seal, then forget it… It’s not a big deal. After all, I have been enduring this kind of torment for more than a hundred million years and I have already gotten used to it. Regardless of anything, I will never give in to them! Since the moment when I put on the Heavenly Marshal’s Armor, I have already put aside my own life and death!”

Lu Wu’s eyes were brimming with heroic spirit. Ning Fan had seen that kind of spirit before in the eyes of many demon generals of the Lu Clan.

In the cultivation world, people who were willing to ignite their demon blood to the very last drop and fight to the death without surrendering were not many. But there were quite a number of them in the nine tribes of the Lu Clan.

That was their pride when they raised their arms and shout “As a general, why should one fear death!”.

“Don’t worry. I’ve promised Lu Daochen to save you. This trivial evil seal is not worth mentioning at all. The person who planted this evil seal sure has a strong bloodline. I suppose he has practically condensed half a drop of ancestral blood. However, this mere half a drop of ancestral blood is too weak for me!”

Ning Fan bit the tip of his tongue and spat out purple-black blood mist. When this blood mist sprinkled on Lu Wu’s back, that inerasable blood-red evil seal began to tremble.

So what if this evil seal was planted by a person with half a drop of ancestral blood?

Speaking of ancestral blood, Ning Fan alone possessed four drops! If the Fu Li Race was still around, he would certainly be the ancestor of this race!

“Break!”

The purple-black blood mist glowed faintly as it formed an abstruse formation mark on Lu Wu’s back.  At the moment the formation mark was formed, Lu Wu’s body became covered with bright purple and black light. In the light, the evil seal which was deeply-rooted in his body began to dissipate with a hissing noise!

*Puff*

Lu Wu’s body suddenly trembled and he then heavily exhaled a mouthful of foul breath. Immediately, his eyes flashed with surprise and joy.

The evil seal had been lifted!

He was now free and his remnant soul could finally enter Samsara!

Within the dark Cloud Palace, white rays instantly soared to the sky. These white rays were all shot out from Lu Wu’s remnant soul.

While basking in the dazzling white rays, he could feel Samsara calling out to him as his soul seemed to be fading away.

“Thank you. Thank you so much! I’m going to enter Samsara now! Once again, thank you!”

Lu Wu’s eyes lit up with delight. After entering Samsara, his current life would come to an end and he could finally be reborn into his next life!

“I’m doing nothing more than fulfilling my own promise. Senior doesn’t need to thank me.”

Ning Fan leaped down from the beast's body and stood on the ground. Looking at Lu Wu who was ascending the sky within the white glow, his eyes looked pleased and satisfied.

Everyone has their own happiness. For many people, death was a frightening thing. But for Lu Wu, having the opportunity to enter Samsara after death was a kind of bliss.

While Lu Wu’s soul was dissipating amidst the white glow, Ning Fan suddenly had a spontaneous idea out of his personal feeling. He patted his storage pouch and took out two jugs of mud-sealed wine. He held one of them himself and threw the other jug towards the sky. With a clear tone, he said. 

“Wouldn’t it be regretful to see you off for a long journey if there’s no wine?!”

Lu Wu whose body was gradually being engulfed by the white glow was stunned by Ning Fan’s sudden action. But promptly after that, he laughed out loud and opened his mouth to swallow the jug of wine.

These jugs of wine were looted by Ning Fan from an unlucky stranger. They were not of a good kind but just some kind of medicated wine.

However, Lu Wu did not refuse it at all. He looked at Ning Fan, feeling regretful that they did not meet each other sooner.

“Well said! You phrased it well by saying you’ll see me off for a long journey! Everyone is afraid of death and Samsara, but you described death as a long journey! I can’t compare myself with this kind of heroic spirit like yours. I will drink this wine. If there’s a chance to meet you in my next life, I will surely invite you to sit on a high tower that rises a hundred chi* (30.7 cm per chi) tall and have a pot of really nice wine!”

“Great! If there’s an opportunity in your next life, I will definitely have a good drink with you!”

The insights that Ning Fan had about Samsara was getting deeper in his mind.

It was right that Samsara was just a long journey like what he had said earlier. During the process of living to dying and getting rebirthed again, it did not seem to be just like that.

The white glow gradually faded. Lu Wu’s figure gradually disappeared and his laughter subsided. He was reincarnated… 

In his next life, he could be a farmer, a famous martial artist of the mortal world or maybe an ordinary scholar. The chances of him cultivating the Dao again was probably not high.

Once again, the Cloud Palace was covered with darkness. Only Ning Fan was left standing there. He stood there for a long time in silence, as if he was recalling the feeling he had when he established a tomb for the old ancestor of Wei Country.

Bidding farewell to a gentleman…

After a long while, he patted his storage pouch and took out the Characterless Heavenly Scripture.

He exchanged this scripture using the contribution points he earned from the test when he was still at the Sinister Sparrow Sect. The scripture had no characters but on the cover of the scripture, there were only a few words: bidding farewell to a gentleman.

In the past, he had no idea who the author of the scripture was. Now, however, he realized that they were the words written by the Immortal Sovereign Zi Dou.

“Has Immortal Sovereign Zi Dou also once taken part in a funeral ceremony for his friend?”

“Bidding farewell to a gentleman… Today I sent a gentleman off. In the next life, that gentleman will send me off. Is this what Samsara means?”

Ning Fan’s understanding towards Samsara grew even deeper. All of a sudden, in the Characterless Heavenly Scripture, purple light began to glow faintly and the pages flipped by themselves even though there was no wind.

When the first page opened, twenty-four Chinese words written in a firm and wild style using Chinese ink gradually filled the white paper which was originally blank.

People die like lights, extinguished.

Samsara blows and all things rekindle.

Immortals die like shattered thoughts.

None shall return in their afterlife.

This is Samsara!

Ning Fan’s expression changed.

So it turns out that this Characterless Heavenly Scripture is not just a scripture without books after all.

It’s just that the words on the scripture were wiped away by the power of Samsara!

Translated by Tommy, edited by Roel