civilwarnovels Chapter 315 Crushed to Ashes, True Cultivation
Chapter 315 Crushed to Ashes, True Cultivation
The large-scale debate that took place in the inner vision did not affect Lü Qian. When his body withdrew from the inner vision and his consciousness returned to his human body, the purge initiated by the enlightened beings on Nathan Island was not yet over.
The bright, white moon that had fallen to earth hovered in the center of Nathan Island, the site of the island's former royal city, which had long since been reduced to ruins by the rampage of the divine tree dragon.
Among the collapsed walls and shattered bricks, one can still vaguely see broken tree roots and tendrils, their gnarled branches containing the life force to begin another cycle of reincarnation.
But at this moment, under the suppression of the vast moonlight, the branches that cover the entire island gradually release the vitality they contain into the world without reservation.
The life force that had been plundered was no longer stolen and possessed, but returned to the workings of heaven and earth in a primitive and simple way.
As life faded, those gnarled and verdant branches turned withered and decayed once more, appearing even more precarious under the oppressive weight of the silvery moon, exuding a black mist formed from boundless resentment.
The black mist, shrouded in mist, struggled under the moonlight, coalescing into faces of resentment and hatred, silently roaring and howling at Lü Qian, who was striding high into the sky.
May your blessings be boundless, and may you guide all people with kindness.
Lu Qian looked down at the ruins of Nathan Island, which had been turned into a rocky beach by the fighting. Looking at the unwilling faces, a compassionate look appeared on his face. But as soon as he finished speaking, several balls of Samadhi Fire poured out from his sleeves.
"boom!"
When the Samadhi True Fire slid out from Lü Qian's sleeve, each ball was only the size of a fist, but these flames grew larger as they faced the wind. The distance of hundreds of feet they traveled to the ground had already turned these fireballs into calamities like meteors from the heavens.
In an instant, half of the sea and sky were dyed crimson gold by the Samadhi True Fire. The flames, carrying boundless momentum, crashed down on the ruins of Nathan Island.
"Bang bang bang..."
A fiery meteor fell to the ground, burning away all evil spirits and folly in the ruins. The remains that had turned into withered wood, along with boundless resentment, were ignited by the true fire and instantly turned to ashes, which drifted between heaven and earth with the flickering flames.
"I am a kind-hearted Taoist priest and cannot bear to see my fellow practitioners unable to find liberation at the moment of their death. Therefore, I have specially used the Samadhi Fire to help you fellow practitioners on your journey."
Amidst the raging flames, Lü Qian strolled through them, gazing at the drifting ashes, and said with increasing compassion, "Souls return to heaven and earth, the Dao disperses to all things. Farewell, everyone."
Having said that, Lü Qian had already walked to the silver moon in the center of the island. He closed his eyes, seemingly reluctant to accept the current situation, but with a flick of his whisk, his robe sleeves stirred up gusts of wind.
The wind and waves were swift, fanning the raging Samadhi Fire around them even more fiercely, while also swirling up the ashes scattered from the flames and spreading them in all directions, as if to blow them to the ends of the earth and never gather again.
Such actions, coupled with Lü Qian's devout and compassionate expression, made it undeniable that a high-ranking Taoist priest was performing rituals to release the lingering attachments of the departed souls.
What was originally a seemingly "severe" act was transformed into something very friendly.
The silver moon hung high in the sky, its light gradually spreading across the surrounding seas, helping the waves stirred up by Lü Qian to blow further afield.
This is all the enlightened beings fulfilling Lü Qian's "good deeds".
Flames soared to the heavens, and the silver moon, radiating endless brilliance, gradually faded into oblivion as the ashes scattered. The radiance of the sun, belonging to the human world, once again illuminated this ruin reduced to ashes.
"Splash splash splash..."
The sound of the waves rose again as the sunlight shone through, and the once silent and eerie atmosphere between the sea and sky became vast and desolate once more, but the voices of the Nathan people were gone.
"Boom!"
The waves crashed against the ruins that had been transformed into a cluster of reefs and islands, and amidst the continuous, muffled thunder, the rising sea level slowly swallowed up these scattered ruins.
In the distance, the fleet belonging to Nadutong arrived at this unfamiliar sea area after the barrier disappeared.
The crew standing at the bow watched the "reefs" gradually disappear into the sea and stopped the fleet from moving forward.
They simply watched as those traces symbolizing a period of history and a generation of civilization were mercilessly erased and hidden from the world by the cruel forces of nature.
"Is even the last trace of Nathan Island going to be erased?"
Huang Boren, who was originally standing in the middle of the crowd, took two steps forward and came to the side of the ship. He leaned on the railing and looked at a reef that was hidden in the waves and disappeared completely from his sight. He seemed to be muttering to himself.
"Will islands that have lost their meaning eventually sink into the waves of time?"
"Will the existence of extraordinary individuals also be like these reefs swallowed by time, fading into an unknown chapter of history, abandoned by the world?"
"Won't."
Just as everyone on the ship was somewhat lost in thought, Lü Qian arrived from afar, stepping on the ripples. He played with the waves, taking a step and being carried more than ten feet away by the waves. In the blink of an eye, he was already standing on the deck of the ship.
His words just now were his answer.
"The term 'Outsider' has always been a label that separates us from ordinary people."
Facing the people on the ship, Lü Qian spread his robe sleeves and stood on the deck of the ship, the sea breeze making his Taoist robe flutter. But at this moment, his aura and demeanor were no different from those of an ordinary person who had never cultivated.
"Those who are different from ordinary people are still human beings."
"We are all born of our parents and nurtured by heaven and earth; our lives are a cycle of flourishing and decay, lasting a hundred years."
"The so-called 'Qi' is something that everyone has, whether acquired or innate. It is a power that flows within the human body and belongs to oneself."
Lu Qian strode past the crowd, his body glowing with Qi flames, but without revealing any imposing aura. Instead, his aura emanated a sense of completeness emanating from within.
"Do not seek externally, but cultivate within."
"Everyone has a path of cultivation. This path is not the internal alchemy of water and fire to form a golden elixir by qi practitioners, nor is it the manipulation of dragons and tigers to regulate yin and yang."
"This path is everyone's life path, starting from the moment of birth and ending at the moment of death."
"This is true for ordinary people, and even more so for extraordinary people."
As Lü Qian narrated, the Qi flames on his body became more restrained, gradually disappearing throughout his body. The extraordinary crimson-gold patterns in his eyes also disappeared, and his black pupils with brown pores returned to normal, making him no different from an ordinary person.
"Magic and supernatural powers, strange skills and methods, are nothing more than shoes and walking sticks for people to travel and climb mountains."
"An immortal is a person who stands tall like a mountain, reaching to the heavens and standing firm on the earth, possessing the height of a mountain and the vastness of heaven and earth."
"Everyone can cultivate themselves; everyone can become an immortal!"
After speaking, Lü Qian took the last step. When the worn-out cloth shoes landed for the last time, this time there was no miraculous light, nor did any ancestors or masters appear.
Among the crowd, only the howling sea breeze and roaring waves could be heard; everything was peaceful, just like the ordinary world where there were no extraordinary people or magic.