Ming Feizhen bobbed his head. “Ripping him apart will leave him like none other freak, right?”
“Precisely,” replied Wugou.
“How is that any different to him being dead?”
“Indeed.”
“In that case… you believe he’s valuable alive, too?”
Wugou didn’t avert his gaze. “Even so, this one believes he should live. He must personally make amends for his sins. The cycle of karma he created doesn’t end with his death. His disciples will seek an opportunity to take revenge. People connected to him won’t let things end with his death, either. For instance, Valley of Villains and Sky Palace won’t stop just because he’s dead. Miguo is not evil by nature; he’s merely let his stubbornness lead him astray. I will have him use the remainder of his life to expiate. Additionally,” Wugou grinned widely, “as your saying goes, the heavens are benevolent.”
“And if I refuse?” Ming Feizhen looked to Miguo out of his peripherals. “Frankly, it’s not my business how many people he’s killed. The people who he drained energy from are people who coveted his offer. You can say they got their just desserts. Thing is, I don’t believe he will change. Plus, he hurt my friend and nearly killed me. If you want to commit murder, you have to know the consequences, don’t you?”
“You are absolutely correct. He has committed too many sins. He cannot repay what he owes you alone. In saying that, I have never done anything for him when he is a member of Lotus Cult and grew up in Lianhua Temple. As his senior, I cannot absolve myself of responsibility in his wrongdoings. Let me shoulder the burden of making it up to everyone.” Wugou closed his eyes and mouth. Out of nowhere, a trail of black blood dripped from the corner of his mouth onto his white lapel.
“Senior Brother!” Miguo zoomed over to Wugou, hoping he could save his senior with his own essence. Alas, he could sense he was too late when he found his senior had severed his own meridians to his heart.
Despite taking his final breaths, a smile still surfaced on Wugou’s pallor face. “Please accept this one’s life in exchange for his.”
Ming Feizhen didn’t give any form of response.
“Yundan.” Although Wugou looked in Miguo’s direction, the appearance of his pupils indicated that he already lost vision in his eyes. “It is my fault for not showing you right from wrong earlier. If you want to kill again or feel enraged, remember this moment. You’ll be sad when I die. Your victim may have parents, siblings, a partner and even children. What will become of them if you take a life? I hope you can abandon the path of evil and return to the path of just… Remember what Shifu taught us. Whether it was then, now or the future, you are the temple’s guardian.”
It wasn’t that Wugou never tried to dissuade Miguo from the path he took; Miguo chose to ignore his senior, and it took his senior’s death to drive out the sentiments that consumed him for all those years.
Miguo knelt at Ming Feizhen’s feet. “This one was wrong, very wrong. It is this one’s defeat. Please save his senior brother.”
Ming Feizhen crossed his arms. “Yeah? What were you wrong about?”
“I took innocent lives, implicated fellow martial artists and more. I am willing to forfeit my life to show gratitude.”
Ming Feizhen picked his nose. “Well, isn’t your life valuable? Your life alone is worth so many lives? Besides, you deserve what you have coming for what you did. Where does he fit into the equation? Why should I save him? Enlighten me.”
“My senior, he… he… is kind and disciplined. Over the years, he has preached, stopped the evil and helped the kind. He is the equivalent of the Western Region’s Buddha.”
Why did I never realise this was the sort of man Senior Brother is? Why did I accuse him of competing for leadership when he shared with me the good deeds he did? It’s all because I’ve covered my eyes and ears to what I don’t want to hear that I’ve cost him his life. I was wrong; he was always right. I’ve realised my errors too late; it’s too late to save him.
“That’s it?” Ming Feizhen questioned.
Needless to say, Miguo didn’t want to or dare to stop. Regrettably, the list of deeds was finite.
“I lacked aptitude, yet my arrogance knew no bounds. To make a name for myself, I set a trap to hurt my uncle. When my senior took the blame for me, I labelled him a gullible fool. When I was seven, I broke my leg when I jumped over the wall to go hear the bell in the forest. Senior Brother carried me on his back to Shifu for treatment. Had it not been for him, I’d be a mere cripple now…” With every successive item, Miguo recounted it more fluidly than the last until no amount of urgency could beat the tears that welled up in his eyes. “Please save him. I am willing to bear any consequence in exchange.”
“Yundan…”
Miguo turned to see Wugou slowly opening his eyes. Despite still looking ghastly pale, Wugou no longer resembled a man at death’s door. Coming in from the front of Wugou’s body was a faint blue light that went on to steady his heartbeat.
Ming Feizhen stated, “Don’t think cutting off your own heartbeat is fun and games. Had I not restricted him using Enlightenment beforehand, I’d only be able to prolong his life by a few months. Even though I’ve saved him, he’s easily lost a decade or two of his life already.” Catching Miguo’s flinch, Ming Feizhen added, “If you expect him to still have a long life after cutting off his own heart, don’t ask me for help. Consult a god.”
“Thank you for saving my senior brother.”
“You sure change your tone fast.” Ming Feizhen directed his attention to Wugou. “I’ve heard a lot about you just now, so I believe you’re a good guy and am more than happy to save you. As for him, though, will you be able to rein him in with his skills?”
Wugou smiled. “He’s not bad by nature.”
Miguo nodded. “Your concern is warranted. I have a suggestion.”
“Ming Feizhen, hurry over. Brother Hua is unconscious!” Su Li called.
“He’s at his limit?”
Hua Qing’s essence suffered damage due to internal energy deprivation, yet he lacked the foundational training. To save an empty vessel on the cusp of death, an expert in internal disciplines needed to refill Hua Qing’s lost true qi. Plenty of people at the venue had the means of filling the role, except they just had a brush with death. The second complication was that, even if Ming Feizhen could fulfil the role, not only would Hua Qing lose a chunk of his lifespan but would also be hyper sensitive to hot and cold temperatures. Suffice to say, training martial arts would be off his menu, too. Ming Feizhen didn’t care enough Wugou to worry about the latter’s lifespan, but Hua Qing was his sworn brother.
The only fool-proof method was for someone to replenish Hua Qing’s true qi the way his body was designed to utilise it. With time, Ming Feizhen could research “Still Chaos Void” and Hua Qing’s qi circulation route. Unfortunately, time wasn’t a luxury they were afforded.
“Allow me,” voiced Miguo.
“You?”
Miguo and Wugou gave each other a tacit smile.
“Please lend this one a hand,” Miguo requested of Ming Feizhen, then strode off to Hua Qing. He took out the relic in his shirt and held it up against Hua Qing’s chest.
Ming Feizhen, realising what Miguo’s intention was, laughed. “This guy would probably find gold when others step on crap.”
Miguo sat down. As he glowed golden, so did the relic. Meanwhile, Hua Qing’s face went from white to a shade of pink. Ming Feizhen pressed a hand on Hua Qing to help unblock the latter’s accupoints.
Shen Wuzheng and Leng Jingliu victoriously returned roughly fifteen minutes later. Leng Jingliu just frowned at the sight of Miguo and Hua Qing, while Shen Wuzheng chuckled.
Although those who woke up below had lost a considerable amount of their progress, they were thankful just to have survived the ordeal. They all needed some recovery time before they could check up on the situation above. Upon looking up, the first thought that came to mind was, “What the hell?”
Instead of scowling, Miguo was smiling as though he had found paradise. One man was floating in the air whilst glowing and releasing white mist from his eyes, nose, ears and mouth.
“Isn’t he the rapist, Hua Feihua?!”
