Upon hearing this, Heaven Master Yun Yang and the others’ expressions changed. Long Chen, Xu Changchuan, and Bai Shishi were their main force in the Nine Prefecture Convention. They could not be fighting amongst themselves.
“I’m not interested.” Long Chen shook his head.
“As an expert, you must face challenges. If you’re such a coward, how are you qualified to pursue fairy Shishi?” demanded Xu Changchuan.
Long Chen scoffed. “How laughable. Who said that I’m pursuing Bai Shishi? And does pursuing someone require qualifications? Well, whatever. I won’t argue with a child. I’ve grown past that competitive age. It would be best if you didn’t provoke me because I’m very busy.”
Long Chen waved his hand, and ignoring everyone else, he lowered his head and started sweeping once more.
“Are you looking down on me?!” shouted Xu Changchuang.
Long Chen didn’t raise his head or even look at him. He just continued sweeping with his head down. Seeing this, Xu Changchuan clenched his fists, and his manifestation quivered.
However, he had his own pride. If Long Chen didn’t want to fight with him, he wouldn’t force it.
“Long Chen, there will be a battle between us sooner or later. Just wait.” He snorted and left.
Watching him leave, Heaven Master Yun Yang sighed. He also led his group away.
Everyone else was gone, but Long Chen continued slowly sweeping. When the leaves were piled together, a light breeze blew by, scattering the leaves. All his previous efforts were wasted.
Long Chen stared for a moment before a smile slowly came across his face. Just at this moment, the sweeping elder returned.
“How do you feel?” he asked.
Long Chen gratefully said, “Many thanks for your pointers, senior. I feel excellent. To not judge based on results, to not decide success or failure… The Heavenly Daos are fair. As long as you work hard, you will definitely have gains. However, sometimes those gains are visible, and sometimes they’re not. I also understand that what I see before me is not necessarily true. Just because I can’t see something doesn’t mean that it doesn’t exist. A single broom could sweep away the dust in front of me and let me see a new world. I will remember the kindness of this pointer.”
Having his progress interrupted midway had infuriated him. It felt like all his work was for nothing. That feeling was terrible.
However, now he had a new feeling. Even if something ultimately failed, it didn’t mean that there were no gains.
Long Chen’s mental state had been enlightened to a far wider view, so the shadow of his defeat on the Martial Heaven Continent also dissipated. He finally walked free from that shadow.
In that battle, many people had died and the Martial Heaven Continent itself was destroyed. But ultimately, most of them lived. He had accomplished what the Martial Heaven Continent entrusted to him.
Furthermore, through that battle, he also recognized the areas he was lacking in. Thus, in life, there were also gains and losses. If you gained something, you also lost something. In the same vein, if you lost something, you also gained something. If you spent all day mired in thoughts of what you lost, that would be the greatest foolishness.
“A pointer? No, this is no pointer. That is because if right and wrong cannot be determined, who would be so presumptuous as to talk about pointers?”
The elder shook his head. He received his broom back and once more started sweeping.
“Right and wrong, good and evil, is there a line separating them? If there is, who decides that? Is that person definitely right? Did that person make that line with a bias toward themself and their own actions? If there are rules, then there will be holes. If there are no rules, then chaos reigns. Where did everything come from then? Life, the Daos, the laws of the world? Perhaps only the ruler could say. Have you thought about being the ruler?”
“Senior…”
Long Chen was startled. The elder’s words seemed to contain some mystery behind them. It was as if he was passing on something to Long Chen. But after he said this, he vanished.
It was as if he was speaking to both Long Chen and himself, befuddling Long Chen.
His words seemed to relate to an even higher level secret. Long Chen didn’t know if this counted as a subtle warning.
After pondering it for a long time, he was still unable to figure out the elder’s intentions. According to the elder, there was no such thing as right or wrong in this world. There were only different viewpoints.
“Big brother Long Chen…”
Just as Long Chen was in thought, a young voice rang out and woke him from his stupor. Rainbow light flew around him. At this moment, a rainbow crane appeared in front of him.
The rainbow crane then transformed into a young girl. Her beautiful eyes were like stars in the night sky. Seeing Long Chen, she smiled so excitedly that her eyes became crescent moons.
“Big brother, I came to find you!” This girl was a transformation of the rainbow crane. He had seen her before at the gates to the inner academy. It was the girl who called him a good person.
However, today, it was just her. Her companions weren’t there, so she immediately hugged him.
Long Chen’s inner heart was originally a bit heavy due to the elder’s final words. However, this girl’s smile infected him. Something beautiful could make a person forget all their vexations.
The girl grew even happier when Long Chen hugged back. Hearing her tinkling laughter, Long Chen felt his entire body relax.
“Big brother, let me tell you, that grandpa is really amazing!” The girl whispered into Long Chen’s ear.
“The sweeping grandpa?” asked Long Chen.
“Yes! Our rainbow crane race lives a long time. From the time when I was born until now, I already saw three generations of deans leave. But that sweeping grandpa has seen nine generations of our race. When our first generation patriarch arrived here, that grandpa was already sweeping the ground,” whispered the girl as if she didn’t want anyone else to hear.
Long Chen was shocked. Although he had felt this sweeping elder to not be ordinary, he had never expected him to have lived for so long. The elder was practically a living fossil.
This girl had seen three generations of deans. But the sweeping elder had seen nine generations of the rainbow crane race? Long Chen didn’t dare to even think of how old this sweeping elder was.
“Ah… My mom is calling me back. It’s over. I definitely said too much…” The girl’s expression suddenly fell.
Long Chen didn’t know what had happened. He also didn’t know how to console her, so he just looked at her.
She suddenly extended a hand, and a feather appeared. It was black and white, and yet rainbow light shone around it.
“My mom told me to give this to you. She said it might be useful to you. Big brother, I have to go. Next time, I’ll come to find you to play!” The girl reluctantly waved goodbye to Long Chen. She transformed back into a rainbow crane and flew away.
“Original true feather!”
When Long Chen looked at the feather she had left in his hand, his whole body shook.
Three dots of light had appeared within Long Chen’s eyes, the exact same as Bai Xiaole’s eyes.
“How can he have the Three Flower Pupils as well?!” Bai Zhantang was filled with disbelief.
“The Three Flower Pupils are an innate divine ability. Other than a Primal, it’s impossible to acquire this ability. Long Chen isn’t a Primal, nor has he cultivated pupil arts. He is most likely manifesting the Three Flower Pupils based on Xiaole,” said Bai Xiaole’s mother.
The three dots of light slowly spun in Long Chen’s eyes, while Bai Xiaole’s eyes, which were the original, were slowly affected.
After an hour, those lights in Bai Xiaole’s eyes gradually came under Long Chen’s control.
“This…”
Seeing this, Bai Zhantang shuddered. Bai Xiaole’s mother held his hand, smiling.
Suddenly, the three dots in Long Chen’s layered together, forming a three flower image.
Bai Xiaole’s eyes did the same. His aura grew explosively, and space started twisting. Luo Bing and the others felt the world spinning around them, as if heaven and earth had been inverted.
When the spatial twisting stopped, Bai Xiaole was lying on the ground, asleep. The moment that he fell, the three flower design in Long Chen’s eyes suddenly transformed from white to black.
In that moment, Bai Xiaole’s mother’s expression changed. Forming one-handed seals, a mirror appeared in front of Long Chen. That mirror had only just appeared when two rays of black light shot out of Long Chen’s eyes.
The black rays reflected off of the mirror and into the roof. A three-meter-thick hole silently appeared in the roof.
The hole was perfectly round and smooth, as if someone had meticulously carved it and polished it.
Everyone felt a chill. If that was the result of some explosion, perhaps it wouldn’t be so chilling. But the fact that this hole just silently appeared with a flash of light was a bizarre feeling.
As for the spatial mirror that Bai Xiaole’s mother had condensed, a black hole was left charred into it.
The spatial mirror slowly collapsed and vanished, as if nothing had happened. But the hole remaining in the roof still gave people chills.
“Does the Three Flower Pupil have such a divine ability?” asked Bai Zhantang.
“No, this isn’t the power of the Three Flower Pupil. The Three Flower Pupil only has spatial energy. It has no destructive power,” said Bai Xiaole’s mother.
At this moment, Long Chen’s eyes were closed, and he wasn’t saying a word. A sharp pain made it impossible for him to open his eyes.
The Three Flower Pupils were no secret. Many books had records of them, as well as how to use them. Using the Nine Star Hegemon Body Art as the foundation, he had also managed to condense the Three Flower Pupils.
However, once he managed to condense them, black energy deep inside his eyes instantly poured through the Three Flower Pupils, destroying them. At the same time, power leaked out. That power was what Bai Xiaole’s mother had blocked.
That black energy was something he had felt before. In the final battle of the Martial Heaven Continent, he had used it to wipe out the final Nine Underworld Hunter, and then following his power backwards, he had witnessed Lord Brahma.
Later, he was saved by the dragon expert, and only then did he learn that this power was called the Purgatory Eyes. The dragon expert had sealed this power for him.
However, this seal was temporary. It could not be maintained forever. The longer it was sealed, the more berserk this power would grow. It would eventually devour his mind.
Every time he was angered, this dark energy would start to grow active. He found it harder and harder to control his emotions. The desire to kill also grew stronger.
When he encountered Bai Xiaole, he had thought to himself that if he could learn eye techniques, it might be possible to unleash this black energy.
However, he hadn’t expected this black energy to be so berserk that as soon as he condensed the Three Flower Pupils, it would destroy them. He hadn’t even had a chance to control it before it was over.
After a long time, Long Chen finally opened his eyes. His eyes were scarlet with red lines filling them. It was a bit frightening.
“Brat. Thank you.” Bai Zhantang spit out some thanks.
Long Chen looked at Bai Zhantang. Bai Zhantang shook his head. “You don’t need to be emotional that you cry over my thanks.”
“Bastard!” Long Chen cursed. How was this from emotion? These involuntary tears were from the pain in his eyes.
Bai Zhantang laughed. It seemed he was very pleased with Long Chen’s teary appearance.
Long Chen rubbed his eyes and circulated the primal chaos space energy to recover. However, he found that for some reason, the primal chaos space’s energy was unable to heal this wound.
Bai Xiaole’s mother didn’t know if she was supposed to laugh when she saw Long Chen’s state that was like a kitten pawing its head. She was barely able to control herself and said, “Long Chen, many thanks. Now that Xiaole’s Three Flower Pupils have been activated, they will start merging with his bloodline. In the future, he can cultivate himself. You’ve helped us resolve this problem which has plagued our hearts for many years. Truly… many thanks.”
It had to be known that every time she saw Bai Zhantang beating Bai Xiaole, her heart shattered. Now that he could cultivate himself, she felt that even if she had to die, it was worth it. She bowed deeply to Long Chen.
Long Chen hastily stopped her. He couldn’t receive such courtesy. “Senior, Xiaole has recognized me as boss. I naturally have to treat him as a brother. When my brother is in trouble, as his boss, I naturally must help. Unlike some people, I won’t randomly shout and fail to do anything proper.”
Curiously, Bai Zhantang smiled despite knowing that Long Chen was talking about him.
Long Chen investigated Bai Xiaole’s state and found that it had gone as he had expected. Nothing was wrong with him, putting him at ease.
Long Chen suddenly noticed that at some point, Bai Shishi had also arrived. But she was standing at the very rear.
“Shishi, since you’ve come, shouldn’t you greet your father and mother?” The other woman beside Bai Zhantang beckoned.
“All I know is that I have a mother. As for a father… Well, it doesn’t matter. Your daughter will be returning to her cultivation.” Bai Shishi bowed to the woman, but didn’t even glance at Bai Zhantang.
“Haha, great minds truly think alive. This father of yours really is useless. Why don’t you take me as your-” started Long Chen.
“Scram.” Bai Shishi instantly frowned and spit out a single word.
“Let me finish!” You should take me as your boss. I’ll help you stand tall in the future,” finished Long Chen.
“Scram.”
Bai Shishi once more spit out a single word before leaving. However, just as she reached the exit, she suddenly paused.
“Thank you for your medicinal pills. I will return this favor.”
After that, she left. Looking in the direction that she went, then looking at Long Chen, Bai Shishi’s mother smiled a strange smile.
