Chapter 888: Collapse
Zu An remained silent for a time, but he eventually sighed and said, “I was so obsessed with immortality that I let that scoundrel Xu Fu’s plan succeed. But now that almost ten thousand years have passed, I finally understand that there’s no such thing as immortality in this world.”
Mi Li laughed mockingly. “I never expected to hear these words come out of your mouth.”
Zu An didn’t become upset, but instead continued, “This Yin Yang Five Elements Formation Xu Fu created can only increase one’s lifespan by a bit. But even if one can keep living, if one has to become that kind of freak, what meaning is there left in staying alive?”
Mi Li asked, “Didn’t Xu Fu say that your body and soul were destroyed? Why are you still here?”
Zu An explained, “In the battle of the sandy hills, I was betrayed by them. I knew I wouldn’t make it, so I sealed up a portion of my split soul. The requirement for activating this split soul was an existence who had cultivated the Primordial Origin Sutra, so Xu Fu naturally didn’t detect it.”
“So you already planned all of this when you sealed me in that place?” Mi Li frowned. “But since you were able to make all of these preparations beforehand, how could you still let Xu Fu plot against you? How disappointing.”
“I didn’t make those plans to guard against Xu Fu.” Zu An sighed. “My main worry was that this formation’s ritual would fail, so I made some arrangements beforehand. That way, someone could find me in the future and assist me in my revival.”
Mi Li’s expression changed, and she quickly reacted. “So that wasn’t an inheritance you intended to pass down, but rather bait! You were using the temptation of the Primordial Origin Sutra’s latter half to bring you a sacrifice that would help in your rebirth!”
“What?” Bi Linglong was shocked when she heard that. What would Zu An have done if that had really happened?
Zu An frowned when he sensed the two women’s concern. He asked, “What kind of relationship does this man have with you?”
Mi Li said calmly, “He’s my disciple.”
Zu An clearly relaxed when he heard that reply. “So be it. To a certain extent, he can also be considered my inheritor. Both of us, husband and wife, ended up teaching the same person.”
“You betrayed my older sister, killed Fu Su, and used me as a sacrifice. I’ve already severed all bonds of marriage to you.” Mi Li looked calm on the surface, but she clearly didn’t wish to talk about such things with him. “How much longer are you going to stay here for? His body can’t endure your possession for that long.”
Anger appeared on Zu An’s face as his brows furrowed, but they gradually unfolded again. “If someone dared to speak to me this way back then, they would’ve already had their body ripped to pieces.”
Mi Li merely harrumphed.
Zu An said with a sigh, “I’ve slept for so long before finally waking up again. Anyone in my situation wouldn’t want to leave so soon.”
Mi Li said unhappily, “If you have something to say, then just say it. Stop stalling in his body.” She knew about the rebound of Keyboard Come. She was worried that Zu An would suffer more and more damage the longer they waited.
“You care quite a bit about this disciple.” Zu An’s smile faded. “Unfortunately, he’s about to die.”
“What?!” Mi Li and Bi Linglong both cried out when they heard those words.
Zu An’s expression remained calm. “His body was already close to breaking down from the start. If it wasn’t for my skills repairing his body, he would’ve already scattered into ashes.”
Mi Li thought to herself, So that was the case after all! She sighed and said, “Thank you!” She had actually been confused all this time. Why was there nothing wrong with Zu An even though he had used Keyboard Come to do something so absurd? It turned out Ying Zheng had helped him!
“You’re actually willing to thank me?” Zu An was shocked. But he quickly realized that it was for the sake of the man he was currently possessing, making him feel strange. However, that man was Mi Li’s disciple, so he let it go.
“If not for the fact that his body had already been tempered several times by the Primordial Origin Sutra, he would’ve already collapsed.” Zu An frowned. “But even so, I can only slow down the rate of this collapse. Once I leave, I fear…”
Mi Li’s expression changed. She quickly asked, “When are you leaving?”
“Soon…” Zu An’s voice gradually grew fainter. Then a vague and transparent soul, vaguely recognizable as Ying Zheng, left his body.
Mi Li panicked and exclaimed, “How can you be so irresponsible?!”
Ying Zheng felt annoyed. This woman had previously been rushing him to get out, and yet now, she was blaming him for leaving too soon. Do you think I don’t want to stay here? The conditions won’t allow me to! His soul was already starting to scatter as his final words echoed through the air. “I’ve already left behind the latter half of the Primordial Origin Sutra in his sea of consciousness…”
Even before he could finish his sentence, his soul scattered completely. The emperor of an age disappeared from the world forever. Even Mi Li, who had hated him deeply for so long, couldn't help but feel a bit emotional.
Zu An suddenly cried out as blood gushed out of his mouth.
Bi Linglong cried out in alarm, quickly moving to support him. “Ah Zu! Ah Zu, are you okay?” She could see the cracks covering Zu An’s skin. Some parts of his body seemed to be shattering. His body was frantically trying to recover, but his recovery speed was far inferior to the rate of collapse.
Zu An chuckled and said, “I thought I might explode to death on the spot. At the very least, though, we killed that stupid octopus.”
When she heard that familiar frivolous voice, Bi Linglong knew that the Zu An she was familiar with was back. “Do you know what kind of situation we’re in? How can you still joke around? Hurry and eat these medicines!” She took out all sorts of precious medicines while speaking.
“It’s useless.” Zu An shook his head. He took out a bottle of ‘Faith in Brother Spring’ from the Brilliant Glass Bead. This was the only bottle of full-recovery medicine he had left. He had always been reluctant to use it, but if he didn’t use it now, there wouldn’t be a chance later.
He quickly drank the medicine. Sure enough, the mess his body had been left in was nourished. His continuously cracking skin also gradually began to heal. Bu Zu An didn’t feel happy yet, because he knew that this was a ‘Faith in Brother Spring (small)’. It wasn’t enough to completely heal him.
Sure enough, his skin cracked apart again, just a little more slowly. But even so, he would completely break apart soon afterward. He said with a sigh, “I guess I’m still dying here.”
“Ah Zu…” Bi Linglong rushed into his arms, tears pouring down her face. Her strong exterior was already nowhere to be seen.
Zu An wanted to pat her head to console her, but he couldn't even do something that simple anymore. He could only hug her with an apologetic smile. He said to Mi Li, “Master, I might be dragging you down with me..”
Mi Li squatted down next to him, her ice-cold hand pressing against his skin to check his pulse. She examined her condition while replying, “I would already be dead if it weren’t for you. Why would I blame you?”
Zu An wanted to say something else, but Mi Li stopped him. “Don’t think about anything else right now. Ying Zheng gave you the lower half of the Primordial Origin Sutra, right?”
Zu An voiced his agreement. He couldn't even nod. He felt a splitting headache, as if his head were going to explode. Blood was already coming out of his seven apertures.
Mi Li’s eyes narrowed when she saw that. She quickly said, “Hurry and cultivate the lower half.”
“It’ll be useless even if I cultivate it,” Zu An said with a bitter laugh. He hadn’t lost consciousness when Ying Zheng took over his body. He could sense that even though Ying Zheng had operated the Primordial Origin Sutra to preserve his body, it still couldn't stop his body from breaking down.
Keyboard Come’s rebound was just that powerful, and he had even boasted about something so crazy. Fortunately, a strand of Ying Zheng’s split soul had existed, so he hadn’t really become Ying Zheng out of nothing. That had made the rebound a bit lighter. Otherwise, he would have exploded as soon as he uttered those words. Even so, the rebound wasn’t something he could withstand.
But even though he said it was useless, giving up wasn’t his style. He did his best to use his primordial ki. Ying Zheng had already used the latter half on his body earlier, and the ki flow remained. Otherwise, he probably wouldn’t be able to cultivate it in his current state.
Mi Li nodded inwardly, but she still remarked, “Didn’t you say it was useless? Why are you still doing it then?”
Zu An chuckled. “I’m not living for myself. If I live for a minute longer, you can live for a minute longer. I can also look at you for a minute longer.”
Mi Li became absentminded. This rascal even dares to tease his master! Her face heated up a bit as she subconsciously gave Bi Linglong a look. However, she was crying so bitterly that she didn’t notice anything strange. Mi Li sighed in relief.
Zu An barely managed to circulate the Primordial Origin Sutra’s lower half through his entire body once. Then, he said with a shaking voice, “I don’t think I can… hold on any longer, sor…” He fainted before he could finish.
Bi Linglong panicked. “Master, why isn’t he getting better?!”
Mi Li sighed. “It looks like cultivating the lower half indeed isn’t enough to heal him.”
“Then doesn’t that mean he’ll die?” Bi Linglong looked at Zu An in distress, cradling him in her arms. She was biting down on her lips hard enough to draw blood.
“There is one other way,” Mi Li suddenly said.
“What is it?” Bi Linglong felt as if she had found something to barely hold onto after falling into an endless abyss. She grabbed Mi Li’s hand firmly, but for some reason, that hand felt cold… so cold.