Chapter 159 Chapter 159: Once the Body Perishes, All Things Cease
Chapter 159: Once the Body Perishes, All Things Cease
"Are you saying... that all this power you possess has absolutely no relation whatsoever to the 'Aeons'?"
Dan Shu turned her head to glance around. What met her eyes was an utterly unsurprising scene of ice and snow; everything was enveloped within crystal-clear ice crystals, which actually held a rather unique kind of beauty.
It's just a pity that it would have been even better if those frozen here weren't the followers of the Elixir Seekers.
"How wonderful... Even though failure is already a foregone conclusion, I can't help but wonder: what if I too could possess such world-altering, earth-shaking power?"
At the very least, compared to these other Elixir Seekers who have fallen into Mara, Dan Shu's state of mind is truly on a level they could never hope to reach. After realizing that the Elixir Seekers were beyond saving, she quickly accepted this outcome, though she couldn't help but feel a lingering sense of resentment in her heart.
"People... when people become aware of their own powerlessness and sorrow, they place all their hopes on elusive, intangible deities... Even those who consider themselves transcendent Xianzhou natives ultimately cannot transcend the most fundamental aspects of human nature."
"In fact, if you set aside the aspect of longevity, so-called Xianzhou people are really no different from ordinary short-lived humans."
Dan Shu let out a soft sigh, as if compressing a thousand words into her heart, yet she simply turned and asked Kevin this one question: "At the very least, at the end of everything, can you tell me your name?"
"......"
Hearing this, Kevin slightly closed his eyes: "Kevin Kaslana."
"I see, Kevin... Perhaps without the Elixir Seekers, without so-called Mara or innate deficiencies, we could have actually become friends?"
It's just a pity that in this real world, there has never been an 'if'.
And it just so happened that at the moment when the situation seemed about to completely turn cold and awkward, the Grand Diviner stationed outside timely led the Cloud Knights to arrive at the scene, her voice ringing out with such righteous conviction—
"Listen up, everyone inside! The entire Alchemy Commission no longer has any followers of the Plague Author! You are now completely surrounded by the Cloud Knights! Surrender your weapons immediately! Perhaps when the 'Ten-Lords Commission' passes judgment, they might still... Huh?"
"This... You've already dealt with all of them? Was it really necessary to go this far?!"
In the area, apart from those Elixir Seeker followers frozen in ice who couldn't utter a single word, only Kevin and Dan Shu were still standing there. What else could Fu Xuan possibly think?
But, but... even though you kept saying you were very powerful and could handle them all by yourself... there was no need to actually deal with all of them!
"Mhm." Kevin nodded his head expressionlessly.
"But, but... then my rushing in here in such a hurry becomes completely meaningless?"
Fu Xuan's serious expression faltered slightly as she spoke rapidly: "The surrounding mist hasn't completely dissipated yet. Even though we prepared certain safety measures, there's still a risk of falling into Mara... Yet you solved all the problems alone. So what was the point of me taking such a great risk to charge in here?"
What's more, Fu Xuan could have clearly let her subordinate Cloud Knights handle things inside while she commanded the battle from the rear as the commander... But now she had taken such a great risk to personally lead the charge, only to be told she could only act as a cleanup crew responsible for tidying up the battlefield?
This... this simply won't do!!!
But with things having come to this, Fu Xuan could only cast a hopeful gaze towards Dan Shu, wishing that this leader of the Elixir Seekers would mount some kind of strong and forceful counterattack, which would then make her own risky behavior seem not so foolish.
But who could have guessed that Dan Shu would also completely defy expectations? She didn't show any panic at all after her plans were exposed. Instead, with a hint of curiosity, she asked Fu Xuan: "Grand Diviner, you don't seem surprised at all?"
"Mhm."
Fu Xuan nodded her head as if victory was assured and said softly: "The Elixir Seekers were bound to be hiding in the Alchemy Commission. The General and I knew this well. We just couldn't find any evidence and had no grounds to accuse the Six Commissions, so we had to wait for you to jump out yourselves."
Any sufficiently mature regime would not allow a single position to completely control all the power of a civilization. So even though he holds the esteemed position of Luofu General, Jing Yuan absolutely cannot truly monopolize power and arbitrarily convict others.
Even if he wanted to change some unreasonable system on the Xianzhou, it would inevitably have to go through layers of approval... This person with the highest authority on the entire Xianzhou is actually not free at all.
"But it's just as well. Introducing Stellaron corruption into the Xianzhou, reviving the Ambrosial Arbor, inducing people to fall into Mara... For these grave crimes, the Ten-Lords Commission will settle accounts with you one by one."
After all, for Xianzhou natives who have almost infinite lifespans aside from Mara-struck transformation, methods of tormenting people are probably too numerous to count. Even in death, it's not necessarily true that all things cease.
"The Ten-Lords Commission that forces us to abandon longevity? Heh..."
Dan Shu seemed to say nothing, yet seemed to say everything.
For others it might be fine, but Fu Xuan in particular fell right into this trap and was immediately infuriated: "You... The Ten-Lords Commission delineates life and death precisely to allow us to continue living with human dignity. How could a monster like you who has cast aside humanity possibly understand?"
"Hahaha, Grand Diviner, you still don't understand... But what I want to tell you is that even I, whom you call a monster, have more control over my own fate than those Xianzhou natives who crave longevity yet remain unaware of it."
"Phantylia, the Elixir Seekers have done their part. Next... it's time for the 'Emanator of Destruction' to fulfill her promise..."
After uttering these words to who-knows-whom, Dan Shu gently set down the long staff in her hand—then her entire person began to scatter like catkins in the wind, completely dissipating into heaven and earth within moments.
"This... what's going on?!"
Fu Xuan hadn't even had time to process what had happened. She could only hurriedly take two steps forward and look around several times but found nothing.
"She... she escaped?!"
What kind of technique is this? Why had she, as the Grand Diviner, never seen it before?!
"No, Grand Diviner."
Kevin gazed calmly at the spot where Dan Shu disappeared and said solemnly: "She is dead. Transforming oneself into energy form and scattering into heaven and earth... Unless one possesses spiritual strength sufficient to condense into solid form again, death is inevitable."
"Ah? But why would she do that? What for?!"
Fu Xuan was utterly dumbfounded. After going through so much trouble only to end up cleaning up the battlefield, now the mastermind behind it all committed suicide?
What kind of刺激 did she suffer that she had to do this?!
"I don't know that, Grand Diviner."
Kevin gently shook his head.
"A person's truest thoughts are known only to themselves."
But whether it was the Chief Alchemist of the Alchemy Commission, or the leader of the Elixir Seekers, or even Dan Shu who would care about an ordinary little girl... all are now dead.
Once the body perishes, all things cease.
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