In the late night at the academy, it was quiet except for some light in the library, while the rest of the place was pitch black.
The Dean walked out of his residence, gazing up at the starry sky.
The starlight was abundant tonight; exceptionally bright.
It could even rival the brightness of the full moon.
Cultivators who have reached the Nepenthe Realm would more or less some stargazing abilities. The Dean looked at the distant stars, looking at the one that now shone so brightly, feeling somewhat melancholic.
He naturally knew what that star meant now.
That was his old friend.
That great daoist sage from the Myriad Heaven Palace.
The two had known each other for many years, and they had already seen each other for the last time before. Although he knew he would die in the near future, he still felt great sorrow when he saw the day arrive.
Although cultivating to his level could be said to be stepping into Great Liberation, in reality, without attaining eternal life, one could not say to be liberated. Now, it meant that the great daoist sage was about to die.
The Dean withdrew his gaze, reminiscing about many past events, and finally shook his head.
As time constantly swept by, countless friends would naturally leave one after another. This was the way of the world, and he could not go against it.
However, dying of old age was already quite good. Compared to that, the death of the previous black-robed monk was quite terrible.
He should have lived for many more years.
He should have lived until now, even died after him.
But he still died, dying before him.
The Dean felt vicissitudes of emotion, then looked towards the lakeside, his expression becoming somewhat strange.
But soon his expression returned to normal.
He shook his head. Many things would always be happening in the Divine Capital. Whether he wanted to or not, he would have to see it. There was no way to change this at all.
"How to choose is all in your heart. In the end, if you make the wrong choice, who can you blame?"
……
……
On Mount Xi, starlight sprinkled down on the mountain.
Countless daoists from the Myriad Heaven Palace appeared on the mountains, whether they were in countless or not. At this moment, they all looked towards a small daoist temple in the rear mountain.
Over there, a young girl squatted outside the temple, crying. She was very heartbroken, tears continuously falling. Many daoists nearby looked at her, feeling deeply sorry, but they could not say anything. Everyone knew that at this moment, no matter who it was, even if they used her favorite food to coax her, they would not be able to console her.
Because what she was grieving at this moment was the most heartbreaking thing for the young girl.
The daoists waited there.
A middle-aged daoist suddenly took a few steps forward, came to the entrance of the temple, and looked inside, asking, "Is the venerable sage unwilling to meet us again? Even if he doesn't want to meet us, Saintess is so heartbroken, he has to meet her one more time no matter what, right?"
Two daoists stood at the entrance of the temple. Listening to this, they just shook their heads and said softly, "The venerable sage has already said that he will only meet the palace lord tonight. If the palace lord cannot leave seclusion, then he won't meet anyone."
The middle-aged daoist fell silent for a moment, gritted his teeth, and was about to go inside. He simply could not accept this. He had to go before that venerable sage and listen to his teachings one more time.
"What are you doing?"
An awe-inspiring voice suddenly sounded, and an ordinary-looking but solemn daoist suddenly appeared here. Looking over, his expression was grim as he said, "Are you all disregarding the venerable sage's final wish?"
"Palace Lord!"
Seeing this daoist appear here, the people all bowed.
The Palace Lord of the Myriad Heaven Palace paid no attention to them. His face was somewhat pale from the considerable backlash he suffered after leaving seclusion in a hurry. But since there was something so major happening on the mountain, how could he care? Passing through the crowd, he quickly stepped into that small daoist temple.
He arrived inside and saw the frail, thin old daoist sitting in the courtyard.
That was a great sage of Daoism, and also the existence with the highest seniority in the Myriad Heaven Palace at present.
When he went to the Divine Capital earlier, he still had some vitality. But now, his life force had fallen into decay and he was long withered like a dry piece of wood.
The Palace Lord arrived before him and gave a serious bow, addressing him as venerable sage.
The venerable sage glanced at him with some affection, then reached out his frail hand and gently placed it on top of the Palace Lord's head. A stream of pure qi poured into his body.
The complexion of the Ten Thousand Heavens Palace Lord instantly improved. He looked at this venerable sage and said with some reluctance, "Venerable Sage, there's no need for this. My minor injuries will heal in a few days."
The venerable sage withdrew his hand and slowly spoke, "Since I'm someone who's nearing the end of my life, I'll do what I can in my final moments."
The Myriad Heaven Palace Lord crouched in front of the venerable sage and said softly, "Disciple is eager to listen to Venerable Sage's teachings."
The venerable sage looked at him, and in that pair of turbid eyes, there was a hint of fondness. He quickly said, "I went to the Divine Capital this time and did that thing, it was not to get the Myriad Heaven Palace involved in it, nor was it out of consideration for the Dao teachings. You should understand my intentions."
He went to the Divine Capital this time and personally met the Dean of the Academy, many of the Myriad Heaven Palace daoists thought he was visiting a friend. In fact, few people knew that he went there for a specific purpose.
The Myriad Heaven Palace Lord nodded and said softly, "Although this disciple doesn't completely understand, if it's Venerable Sage's intention, I'll certainly follow it. Venerable Sage has great wisdom, one day, this disciple will surely understand it."
The venerable sage smiled, shook his head, and said, "This isn't something that you should do. As the Palace Lord of the Myriad Heaven Palace, you should have your own opinions. Even if you refute me, I'd have been fine with it too. In any case, you should have your own thoughts."
The Myriad Heaven Palace Lord did not know what he should say, so he just remained silent.
The venerable sage said, "The Great Liang Dynasty has been accumulating power for many years, they are going to stir up a storm. In the midst of this huge wave, the Myriad Heaven Palace has an opportunity. Whether the Great Liang Dynasty can be revitalized and whether the Myriad Heaven Palace can become the daoist leader of Daoism, these are the things you guys need to worry about. I'm done caring about them. I did all this just to follow my heart. Now that everything is done, I still need to shamelessly ask you for one thing."
The Myriad Heaven Palace Lord naturally understood what it was. He nodded slightly and said softly, "This disciple will naturally teach the Saintess well."
The venerable sage shook his head and slowly said, "That girl is a sage. Actually, don't need to make her do anything. I merely planted a seed and watered it. What happens later, let her figure it out on her own. She will definitely bloom a rare flower in the world. When she blooms, the Myriad Heaven Palace will be fine. You just need to understand this point."
The Myriad Heaven Palace Lord was stunned, then nodded vigorously.
The venerable sage opened his mouth as if he wanted to say something, but it seemed incredibly difficult for him.
The Myriad Heaven Palace Lord naturally realized that the venerable sage had truly exhausted his life force and could not speak anymore.
"Do you want to meet the Saintess one last time?"
The Myriad Heaven Palace Lord hesitated and said, "After all, you have a master-disciple relationship. Isn't parting like this a little too cruel?"
The venerable sage did not speak and just looked at the sky. The stars were twinkling in the night sky. According to legend, every deceased Nepenthe Realm cultivator was a star in the sky.
"If the legend is true, then I'll always be around, always watching that girl..."
The venerable sage spoke with difficulty, saying softly, "But I'd rather the legend be fake. Disappearing from the world at this point, as if I had never come, would actually be a good thing."
The Myriad Heaven Palace Lord said softly, "Venerable Sage's realm is profound, this disciple cannot compare."
The venerable sage did not speak, just looked at the night sky. For some reason, his eyes seemed to be filled with a sense of confusion.
He had cultivated for many years, and read an unknown number of books, and knew countless things. Logically speaking, there should not be anything in the world that could still perplex him like this. However, looking at him now, it was clear that at this moment, he still did not understand some things.
Furthermore, those things seemed to be suddenly born at this moment.
Could this be the enlightenment between life and death?
The venerable sage opened his mouth, struggled to speak, and uttered a word.
"Heaven..."[Sky]
The Myriad Heaven Palace Lord furrowed his brows slightly, vaguely feeling that this word was somewhat extraordinary, but what did 'heaven' mean?
He looked at the venerable sage and asked, "Venerable sage, this is..."
His voice suddenly stopped.
Because he could no longer sense the venerable sage's aura.
He had passed away.
The Myriad Heaven Palace Lord's eyes were filled with sadness.
The death of this great daoist sage was a difficult thing for the Myriad Heaven Palace to accept.
Before long, the sound of a bell rang.
It was audible in the mountains and creeks.
The daoists outside the daoist temple were first startled, then they also lowered their heads in sorrow.
This great daoist sage had always maintained a high moral character, and it was difficult for anyone to find any fault with him. Hence, he had high prestige throughout the entire Dao society.
But now, he had ultimately turned to dust.
Zhu Xia was still squatting at the door of the daoist temple, staring at the ground.
She had also heard the tolling of the bell.
A puddle of tears had long since formed on the ground.
Her tears had been flowing all this while.
To others, the venerable sage was a senior worthy of respect. But to Zhu Xia, he was a kind teacher, the person she had felt closest to over the years.
But now he was gone too.
Zhu Xia was very sad.
This kind of sorrow could not be described in words.
She opened her mouth, but found that she could not wail.
So she became even sadder.
With more and more tears, her sorrow deepened.
Then, she lowered her head in distress, and tears continued to roll down.
After some time, Zhu Xia spoke softly with a hoarse voice, "Master, it's delicious."
