150: The sound of the zither cleanses the dreamlike encounter
When Su Wan entered the inner room with the slightly cool tea, she saw Mo Chen standing by the window, his back rigid, his body permeated by an almost tangible, icy Evil Qi. A thin layer of frost had even condensed on the window lattice.
He gazed at the deep night outside the window, yet his eyes were hollow, fixed on nothingness. His fingertips unconsciously rubbed together, and the faint, gray Qi energy that made her heart palpitate flickered in and out of existence.
He was like a fully drawn bow, its string stretched to the limit, as if about to unleash an arrow of destruction at any moment.
Su Wan's heart sank abruptly. This feeling was stronger than any time before. She didn't know where he had gone tonight or what he had done, but she could sense that the Vicious Beast barely restrained within him was frantically crashing against its cage.
She didn't ask aloud, but quietly placed the tea on the table, then walked to the corner and sat down at the ancient paulownia zither.
Slender fingers gently lifted, then fell.
"Zheng—"
A clear, melodious zither note, like a mountain spring dripping into a secluded pool, broke the suffocating silence in the room.
It was the Heart-Clearing and Universal Salvation Mantra.
The zither music flowed, initially subtle, then lingering, carrying a strange soothing power, like gentle moonlight, streaming into every corner of the room. The notes danced, evoking images of fresh rain in an empty mountain and a secluded bamboo grove stream—pure, serene, utterly at odds with the monstrous Evil Qi surrounding Mo Chen.
Mo Chen's rigid body trembled slightly. The icy Demonic Essence, filled with the intent of slaughter and plunder, under the cleansing of this Heart-Clearing zither music, actually let out faint "hissing" sounds, as if a hot iron had met a cold spring. Its restless intent was forcibly suppressed a little.
He slowly turned around, his still crimson eyes looking at the woman bowing her head, playing the zither. The candlelight cast soft shadows on her profile, her expression focused and serene, as if all external disturbances had nothing to do with her; she was only immersed in her world of music.
Obstacle... the Demonic Seed's thought reminded him coldly again.
But this time, the thought brought not just pure destructive impulse, but also a trace of... indescribable sluggishness. This zither music, this woman, this small piece of tranquility, was like the most tenacious spiderweb, entwining his demonic heart; the more he struggled, the tighter the binds became.
The zither music gradually reached its climax, and the ethereal quality grew stronger. The Evil Qi around Mo Chen visibly receded, and the crimson in his eyes slowly faded, returning to that unfathomably deep black. He walked to the table and sat down, not touching the cup of tea, but simply looking at Su Wan quietly.
The song ended, its lingering notes echoing endlessly in the room.
Su Wan looked up, meeting his gaze. His eyes were still cold, but the terrifying madness deep within them seemed to have subsided. She let out a soft sigh of relief, and the corners of her lips barely managed a subtle curve.
The two looked at each other, neither speaking.
Only the soft crackling of the candlelight and the faint chirping of insects from outside remained in the room.
A silent understanding flowed in the air. She didn't need to know what he had done, and he wouldn't explain why he returned full of hostility. She simply offered a clear melody when he was on the verge of losing control; and he, in turn, silently accepted this gentle intervention.
However, this tranquility made Mo Chen feel a deeper unease. He found himself beginning to rely on this comfort, on the momentary peace this woman brought. For someone determined to become a world-destroying Demonic Venerable and seek revenge against the supreme existence, this was a fatal weakness.
The night deepened.
Perhaps it was the stimulation of the day's slaughter, or perhaps the Heart-Clearing and Universal Salvation Mantra had stirred something deeper, but Mo Chen fell into an extremely bizarre dream.
In the dream, there were no specific sights, only an boundless, hazy Chaos Void.
And in that Void, stood two people.
One, dressed in blood-stained green robes, with a face identical to his own, was the current Mo Chen. His aura was cold, and deep within his eyes lay indifference to everything in this world and a potential desire for destruction.
The other, however, was shrouded in endless darkness and blood-light, only a faint outline visible. Yet, the monstrous killing intent, the terrifying demonic might capable of crushing stars and slaughtering the Myriad Heavens and Myriad Realms, pressed down on the entire dream space as if it were tangible! That was... Liu Qingtian! It was the existence whose power and memories had been Sealed, yet still retained its most fundamental demonic nature!
Two "him," distinctly confronting each other in this Chaos Void.
"You hesitated," Liu Qingtian, in the blood-light, spoke, his voice hoarse and cold, filled with endless malice, "Because of this mortal woman? Because of this laughable tranquility?"
Mo Chen in green robes remained silent, not denying it.
"Weak!" Liu Qingtian's voice was like thunder, shaking the dream space. "Don't forget who you are! Don't forget Luo Jiuxuan! Don't forget the Primordial Realm! The meaning of our existence is to plunder, to grow stronger, to seek revenge! Any obstacle should be crushed!"
"And after crushing?" Mo Chen finally spoke, his voice calm, yet with a hint of confusion. "Gain power, and then what? Become a monster that only knows slaughter and destruction, like you? What difference would such an existence have from Luo Jiuxuan? And what difference from the ants I casually crush in this world?"
"Difference?" Liu Qingtian sneered, blood-light surging. "The difference is, we live, they die! The difference is, we possess power and can decide our own destiny, instead of being trapped by worldly trifles and burdened by mere affections, like now!"
"Destiny..." Mo Chen murmured, raising his head, his gaze piercing through the blood-light, as if wanting to see through the other's essence. "If our destiny is to become a Devil Head like you, then this destiny, I'd rather not have it."
"Arrogant!" Liu Qingtian roared, terrifying killing intent surging towards Mo Chen like a tide. "Without power, you don't even have the right to choose! The momentary peace you now enjoy is nothing but an illusion! As long as Luo Jiuxuan exists, as long as the Laws of the Myriad Heavens and Myriad Realms remain as they are, you, and I, have nowhere to escape!"
With the killing intent upon him, Mo Chen's green robes were torn by an invisible force, but he still stood, the confusion in his eyes gradually replaced by a strange determination.
"Perhaps... you are right," he said softly. "Without power, everything is an illusion."
Liu Qingtian's killing intent paused slightly.
"But," Mo Chen's tone shifted, his gaze burning as he looked at the figure in the blood-light, "power shouldn't only have this one use of slaughter and plunder. In these past five years, I have seen too much death, and... I have also felt a faint glimmer of light."
The image of Su Wan playing the zither, and the warm lamplight in the valley, flashed through his mind.
"I want power, but I don't want to become a weapon that only knows destruction. My Dao, perhaps, shouldn't merely be 'Demonic'."
"Absurd!" Liu Qingtian coldly rebuked. "A demon is a demon! What other Dao is there?!"
"Is that so?" Mo Chen's lips curved into an extremely faint arc, an arc that bore some resemblance to Liu Qingtian's mocking expression. "Then tell me, if the Demonic Path is truly the only one, why do I have a trace of Karma within me? Why can the Power of Annihilation of the Return to the Void coexist with my mortal body? Why... is your future Incarnation that towering willow tree, and not a sea of blood?"
This series of questions caused the blood-light around Liu Qingtian to churn violently, as if touching upon some secrets he was unwilling to ponder deeply.
Within the dream, a long silence fell.
The two "him," representing two different tendencies of the same Soul, engaged in an unknown, fierce confrontation in the deepest reaches of consciousness.
No one knew what they ultimately discussed, what consensus they reached, or if it was merely a temporary balance.
When Mo Chen woke from his dream, the first light of dawn was already breaking outside the window.
Su Wan was still sound asleep, her breathing even.
He sat up, feeling the power within him. The Demonic Essence that had been restless at all times, craving slaughter and growth, was now in a strange state of dormancy.
It hadn't disappeared, nor had it been weakened, but rather, like a wild horse fitted with reins, it no longer galloped blindly, but had lain dormant, awaiting... a clear direction.
Killing intent no longer spontaneously arose uncontrollably.
And power no longer grew solely by devouring negative emotions.
He lowered his head, looking at his hands, his eyes complex and unfathomable.
The dialogue in the dream seemed to have carved a subtle crack in his cold demonic heart. A thought, different from pure destruction, more obscure and difficult to grasp, quietly emerged like a newborn sprout.
The path ahead seemed to become even more shrouded in mist.
But one thing was certain: from this moment on, "Mo Chen," or rather "Liu Qingtian's" Demonic Path, had deviated from its original trajectory of pure destruction, entering an unknown Domain that even he himself had not anticipated.