Chapter 23
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Chapter 23: Bai Lian’s Predicament
The moment Bai Lian stepped into the red light, she experienced an extremely strange transformation.
Is that just a ball of light?
Yes.
But perhaps not entirely.
She seemed to have plunged into an endless ocean, with only the water waves visible from the outside.
In that lightless place, she passed through time, space, and billions of deductions.
When her eyes finally reopened, her lost senses of sight, hearing, smell, and touch all came back!
At first, Bai Lian’s eyes were filled with a vast expanse of white.
Then, as the familiar voice of Red Dust poured into her ears, the white expanse began to crack and tear apart into a cold world filled with snowflakes the size of goose feathers.
She took a deep breath and through the swirling snowflakes, she could already see a blurry figure.
She knew that was the person she had been longing to meet day and night. –
[Red Dust]
There was no noise, no excitement, no fear, only a calmness that was completely different from the outside world.
In fact, the world inside this red light sphere is completely severed from the outside world.
While the outside world shrouded under the Sansheng Stele continues to push forward incessantly, everything inside the red light sphere returns to its origin the moment Bai Lian steps into it.
What is meant by the origin?
The origin is the moment when Bai Lian used the power of the Monument of the Next World to throw the fragments of An Lan’s soul into the Land of Immortals and started to deduce everything!
At that moment, she was being bound by the way of the Great Tao of Red Dust, and couldn’t move, as if she had fallen into a desperate situation.
However, now, although she is still bound, everything is different.
The most noticeable change is the change in her body shape.
Formerly, she had the appearance of An Lan, but didn’t have a physical form. Now, she has transformed into a human being, and therefore the "rope" that bound her has also become tangible.
From her arms and wrists to her thighs, calves, chest, and abdomen, she was bound tightly.
But the real change is the inner transformation.
For Red Dust, this may only be a moment, but for her, it is billions of times of transmigration!
Of course, one cannot compare an ordinary person to her.
She was once the Blank Tao, and even though she had her own consciousness, she was born to carry the new way of the Great Tao. However, she still couldn’t escape the labels of "stupid" and "slow".
Don’t you see that Bai Lian and An Lan have been together for nearly ten thousand years, and they still remain dull and silly, speaking slowly?
However, it is precisely this "stupidity" that allows her to continue endless calculations for billions of times, until she reaches a state of extreme weakness and begins to collapse.
If it were an ordinary person, they would have completely lost themselves in the vortex of failure long before reaching such a exaggerated number of calculations.
With all her spirits rallied, the fluttering "heavy snow" in front of Bai Lian finally dissipated completely, and she could see the full appearance of the woman across from her clearly.
Not only did their voices sound exactly the same, but the appearance of that woman was also exactly the same as hers!
If there were any differences, it would only be their clothing, temperament, and the ★ under the right corner of Bai Lian’s eye.
Is this Red Dust?
Red Dust suddenly spoke, "Do you find it difficult to adapt to my current appearance, sister?"
She smiled with a charming and bright demeanor, even Bai Lian showed a brief moment of loss.
Red Dust shrouded in the white robes was no different from the fairy under the moon.
Her eyes flickered like the cool moonlight.
While emitting a cold aura, she also exuded a soul-stirring and seductive charm.
"!"
Bai Lian completely didn’t understand what the situation was.
This was completely different from what she had imagined for their reunion.
She had prepared herself adequately before this. Once Red Dust launched an attack on her, she would immediately use the Great Tao to break the bonds on her body and dodge, then launch a verbal attack on Red Dust during her moment of confusion.
Directly attacking?
That is just the worst-case scenario.
Because the gap between her and Red Dust is too large to bridge on the surface, she would only take risks as a last resort when all other options are exhausted.
Now it’s really good.
Red Dust is completely unpredictable!
Bai Lian has rehearsed many scenarios, but never expected it to be this kind of scene, which is warm and a bit sweet.
If a little bit of pink special effects were added, outsiders might think it’s the excited reunion of twin sisters who have been separated for many years.
There was no warmth in Bai Lian’s heart, only a chill that spread throughout her body, making her feel deeply cold.
The more bizarre, the more cautious one needs to be!
You should know that not long ago, Red Dust was cold and even yelled at her.
Bai Lian decided to bide her time and pretended to be unable to break free from the restraints for the time being.
She thought this way and also acted accordingly.
But in the next moment, Red Dust made a completely unexpected move that caught her off guard.
Swish!
Red Dust lightly swung her right arm, and a crescent flew out, shooting straight towards the middle of Bai Lian’s chest.
The crescent came extremely fast, almost reaching the crack in Bai Lian’s chest the moment it was released.
For a moment, Bai Lian thought that her body was about to be pierced.
She held her breath, her pupils slightly contracted, her muscles tense, and her gaze slowly lowered.
There were no holes or scars where it hit.
She saw the rope that bound her being cut in half, and the crescent stopped without continuing forward. By just applying a little more pressure, it could easily cleave through her clothes.
What does this mean?
Whatever the purpose was, at least Red Dust didn’t kill her on the spot. This gave her a chance to have a conversation with Red Dust and find out what she was really thinking.
Bai Lian’s body trembled slightly and created tiny ripples that slapped against the crescent from both sides. In an instant, the crescent shattered into countless twinkling stars while the broken rope fell away and she was freed.
"What do you want?" Bai Lian took a step forward and walked out of the rope circles on the ground. "If you wanted to kill me, that last move almost took half of my life away."
Red Dust spoke slowly, "I haven’t decided yet if I want to kill you."
Bai Lian’s voice was calm, "Is that so?"
Red Dust smiled faintly, "I know you want to kill me."
"…"
After hesitating for a moment, Bai Lian still admitted generously, "Yes, I want to kill you, but it’s not out of hatred. I know you don’t…"
"I believe."
Red Dust suddenly interrupted Bai Lian’s words.
Bai Lian had her mouth slightly open.
The situation today was very unusual. No matter what she did, she was always a step behind Red Dust, as if everything she thought in her heart was seen through by Red Dust!
Before this, although she had fallen into danger countless times, she had never felt so suffocated.
Is Red Dust trying to wear down my confidence with this method?
Bai Lian decided to take back the initiative.
If this continues, she will eventually be suppressed by Red Dust and become a plaything in Red Dust’s hands.
Since she could not make a breakthrough in force, she could only cut straight to the point.
Bai Lian said, "All along, there has been a question in the depths of my heart, a question related to you."
Red Dust’s face remained relaxed. "Have we ever had such a peaceful conversation over the years, sister?"
Bai Lian stared at Red Dust, and Red Dust stared back at her.
She finally shook her head.
No.
Their conversations were always brief, hurried, and even unremarkable. Even during the conflict they had, the core of their conversation was still about her master.
To confide in each other like ordinary sisters, to talk about their troubles and share interesting things that have happened to them, they had never done it even once.
Bai Lian felt a lot of guilt in her heart.
However, she didn’t avoid Red Dust’s eyes because of her guilt.
Because they have never done it before, they need to change this time and urgently require a different type of conversation than usual.
Of course, Bai Lian had to admit that she had some personal motives and she was not going to conceal them.
Seemingly satisfied with the question, Red Dust said, "You can ask, and I’ll answer as appropriate."
"Okay."
Bai Lian nodded.
After her appearance changed, Red Dust’s personality seemed to change as well. She was no longer as irritable as before.
She took a deep breath and asked the question that she had been thinking about for a long time.
"After we separated, what exactly did you go through? I only know the general situation, and I know it would take a lot of time to explain all these things. But if you don’t mind, I still hope you can tell me."
As the voice fell, like falling into a deep valley, there was no response except for a few echoes.
Red Dust didn’t speak, so Bai Lian waited patiently. She showed great patience.
After a while, Red Dust lightly opened her lips and said, "I thought you would ask me why I must kill An Lan."
Bai Lian said, "I want to ask, but I don’t think you will give me an answer."
Red Dust laughed heartily, her laughter was charming and beautiful, like a blooming flower.
However, in Bai Lian’s eyes, this smile appeared somewhat fake.
After a few moments, Red Dust said, "Since you want to know, then I will tell you."
After speaking, she fell silent.
She really didn’t expect that the question Bai Lian would ask would be this one.
From the moment they met, everything went exactly as she had anticipated, but with this question, a crack appeared in her expectations.
She hated this feeling, she wanted to put everything back on track!
Red Dust walked step by step towards Bai Lian, without any imposing aura, but still made Bai Lian nervous.
She stopped only when she was an arm’s length away from Bai Lian.
"Da."
That was the crisp sound of heels tapping on the ground.
Red Dust said, "The reason why I want to kill An Lan is not because I’m jealous of her relationship with you, but because she led you astray."
Ah?
Did the answer go off track?
Bai Lian shook her head quickly and said, "No, this is not what I want to know."
However, Red Dust seemed not to have heard her words, "What I said at that time was not wrong. You have already become like her, and sooner or later, you will offer yourself to her and become the stepping stone that helps her transform into Faramita Immortal."
Bai Lian didn’t deny these words.
You should know that even the Heavenly Lord’s lifespan is not infinite. Once her master’s limit is reached, she will definitely take the initiative to let her master imprint the way of the Great Tao onto her body, thus becoming Faramita Immortal and extending her own lifespan.
She didn’t feel that what she was doing was wrong, but it seemed that Red Dust didn’t accept it at all.
So just because of this reason, does Red Dust have to kill her master?
Then why don’t they just talk it out and make everything clear?
Now that she has become a human, there is no need for her master to imprint the way of the Great Tao onto her body to seek a breakthrough.
Bai Lian really wants to tell Red Dust that everything could come to an end.
But when the words were at the tip of her tongue, she swallowed them back.
She always felt that things couldn’t be that simple. If that was the case, then why didn’t Red Dust say it directly from the beginning?
Red Dust is different from her and is not an ignorant person who knows nothing.
After a long time, Bai Lian still remembers clearly the scene of meeting Red Dust again after leaving the Land of Immortals.
Red Dust grew up in a chaotic place and had no one to rely on, but she was still able to grow up smoothly by the time they met, not only because of her determination, but also because she was cunning.
This kind of Red Dust would never go straight to kill An Lan without any other attempts.
There must be other reasons!
If she rushes in at this time, it is highly likely that she will not get the results she wants.
It was not easy for Bai Lian to have the opportunity to have a peaceful conversation with Red Dust, and she didn’t want to be killed before she could even get a superficial understanding. She only had about ten more chances left.
She looked directly at Red Dust, fearlessly facing the familiar face.
"What I’m most curious about right now is what you’ve experienced after we separated."
The words seemed to hit a sore spot for Red Dust.
The woman who had always appeared to be easy-going suddenly became uneasy, a little irritable, and a little angry.
"What’s the use of knowing about these things?"
Bai Lian said, "If you don’t want to say it, then just consider me not asking anything."
Red Dust stared at Bai Lian tightly and said, "You’ve won the affection of many women by using this inconsistent way of being sometimes tough and sometimes weak, haven’t you?"
"Ah?"
Bai Lian didn’t know how to respond to Red Dust for a moment.
This question… made her feel vaguely uneasy.
Seeing that Bai Lian was unwilling to answer directly, Red Dust began to pace around her.
"Okay, then listen carefully!"
Red Dust began to recount her past, and the process of her becoming human could be said to be a complete accident.
During the process of crossing the world barrier, when she was not mentally prepared and saw many absurd things, she met a dying little girl.
The little girl held her hand and said she didn’t want to die, but in the end, she still died.
In this way, she unintentionally became the little girl’s appearance, took over all the little girl’s matters, and lived on.
It was an unfortunate family, where there was also a drunkard in the already impoverished home.
After the drunken man sold his wife and attempted to sell her to make money, she used a knife to kill the drunken man and the human trafficker together.
Then she was targeted by the human trafficker’s accomplices and became a wanderer, relying on a small knife to survive in the world that was never bright and shiny.
At that time, her head was in a state of confusion, and she had already forgotten her past. But even so, she still managed to survive smoothly.
After barely filling her stomach, her favorite thing to do was to sit on the side of the street and watch the peaceful families pass by in front of her.
Watching the mischievous little sister being chased by her older sister.
Watching the sisters love and care for each other.
After that, she met Bai Lian and An Lan, and after that, Bai Lian basically knew everything.
Bai Lian sighed, "Were you living this kind of life even when you were in the Land of Immortals?"
Red Dust said, "No."
Bai Lian didn’t mind Red Dust’s estrangement. She continued, "Did you just say that you’re not actually jealous of Master?"
Red Dust said, "Yes."
Bai Lian nodded, "So, actually from the beginning, it wasn’t Master that you wanted to kill, but me, right?"
Due to those experiences, Red Dust hated her.
After all, they were both the Blank Tao, but their experiences were one in the heavens and one on earth.
From this perspective, many problems can be explained equally well.
The reason why Red Dust wanted to kill Master was because Master would intervene and stop her.
She could give up her own life for Master, and likewise, Master could also give up her own life for her.
For Red Dust, only by getting rid of Master, the one who was in the way, could she boldly and confidently harm her.
In this case, it seems to be a deadlock.
Bai Lian was speechless.
As Red Dust wanted her life, she didn’t think that a few belated words of concern could erase the hatred in Red Dust’s heart.
Just as Bai Lian was thinking this, Red Dust suddenly burst into wild laughter, completely abandoning all her previous composure, as if she were about to cry from laughing so hard.
"What’s wrong?"
Bai Lian stared at Red Dust in a daze.
Seeing Red Dust, she always felt like she was looking at another side of herself.
After a while, Red Dust finally wiped away her laughter and her face suddenly turned cold and stern.
"I thought after experiencing so much, you would have changed in some way, but clearly I overestimated you and underestimated An Lan’s influence on you. You don’t understand me, you never did!"
Bai Lian hurriedly said, "I really don’t understand you, but I’m trying to understand you."
"Huh." Red Dust glanced sideways at Bai Lian. "Do you really think I would hate you over something so small? Even if you were by my side at that time, what use would it have been? When we separated, even though you were much older than me, what aspect of you could compare to me? You would only become a burden to me if you were there."
Bai Lian bowed her head.
She had to admit that Red Dust was right.
Although Red Dust’s mind was in chaos at that time, she had already witnessed the darkness of the bottom of society and had her own set of survival rules.
However, at that time, she was still naive and ignorant, and if she stayed by Red Dust’s side, she probably wouldn’t be able to do anything besides acting cute.
Help Red Dust find food together?
Impossible.
She would only make Red Dust even hungrier by eating with her.
Red Dust said, "Do you know what my first thought was when I saw you?"
Bai Lian shook her head and said, "I don’t know."
Red Dust laughed and said, "Disappointed, very disappointed! I gave you countless opportunities, but you still kept going further down that wrong path!"
Her smile didn’t seem mocking, and after the short moment of losing composure just now, she seemed to have regained her elegance.
But from another perspective, her smile was like a bolt from the blue for Bai Lian!
Countless opportunities?
All of a sudden, Bai Lian thought of the Monument of the Next World.
Since meeting Red Dust, she had felt that something was wrong. She felt restricted in every way and was completely exposed before Red Dust, as if her every word and action were seen through.
If, if…
Bai Lian anxiously asked, "You know about the Monument of the Next World and that I borrowed it to carry out deductions?"
Red Dust sighed, "I know."
To prove her words, she slowly lifted her right hand.
As she raised her right hand, a mark appeared under her right eye that looked exactly like the one under Bai Lian’s eye.
Bai Lian remembered that it was a scar left on Red Dust’s body by An Lan during their earlier confrontation, and was later accidentally revealed by An Lan during deductions.
But now it seems…
Red Dust’s right index finger finally pressed on the ★.
"This is the fate mark that I intentionally left on your body."
Her voice poured into Bai Lian’s ears like a cold wind.
When Bai Lian came to her senses, she suddenly found that her field of vision had changed and was now facing in a completely opposite direction to where she was before.
"This is…"
Bai Lian finally realized that she was now seeing from Red Dust’s point of view, while Red Dust was seeing from hers; the two of them had "switched" places!
Her face turned pale, "You know everything about what I did in the deduction?"
Red Dust moved her hand away, and Bai Lian found that her vision had returned to normal.
Red Dust said, "It’s not that much, after all, you’re older than me, and I cannot fully grasp the whole situation, but I still know about seventy to eighty percent of it."
"That…"
Red Dust smiled and said, "Don’t worry, I’m not interested in what you and those women you like have done."
Bai Lian shook her head. "It’s not that. Since you know everything, did you allow me to take away my master’s shattered divine soul and throw it into the Land of Immortals? Did you allow me to use the Monument of the Next World for deduction? Does that mean that all of this was planned by you?"
Red Dust said, "That’s correct."
Bai Lian’s vision turned black.
A feeling of despair submerged her like a tidal wave in an instant.
Even though she had experienced numerous failures in deducing with the Monument of the Next World, she had never felt as desperate as she did now.
All the efforts she had made so far must have looked like a joke in Red Dust’s eyes, hadn’t they?
She was nothing but a pet raised within Red Dust’s realm.
As long as Red Dust wishes, she, her master, and many Martial Sisters could be annihilated by Red Dust at any time.
She was able to walk up to Red Dust because Red Dust allowed her to come.
Effort?
Enlightenment?
Rise up?
All of this is illusory, formed under Red Dust’s indulgence, meaningless.
All the memories that she treasures as her whole life are just pitiful gifts bestowed upon her by Red Dust.
A mere pet trying to rebel against its "master"?
Dream on.
Dream!
It’s all a dream!
It is all empty!
Bai Lian lowered her head, clenched her fists tightly, and those carefully trimmed nails pierced into the flesh of her palms like thorns.
And then, the hot blood flowed out of the wound with a gurgling sound. Soon, the fresh blood dripped onto her skirt, and slid down to her feet.
Red Dust looked silently at Bai Lian like this.
After a while, she lifted her foot and took a step forward, then stopped and turned in another direction to circle around Bai Lian. Her footsteps were sometimes fast and sometimes slow, but she could not maintain a constant speed.
"Don’t think of me as someone who enjoys torturing others," she said.
Bai Lian didn’t react.
Red Dust said to herself, "After recovering the memories as the Blank Tao, do you know what my biggest idea is?"
"…"
"I want to destroy all of this! Why should the Blank Tao be born as a vessel for the new way of the Great Tao? Why should it be fought over by others? Why should I be the Blank Tao? Why must we bear the evil deeds of others?" Red Dust’s voice grew louder.
"…"
Pausing for a moment, Red Dust continued, "Then I remembered the things I’ve seen and the experiences I’ve had. It’s not us who were wrong, it’s the Heavenly Dao! Why do we have to go through reincarnation? Why must we have endless calamities and disasters? If it weren’t for these things, there wouldn’t be a Blank Tao, there wouldn’t be people fighting over it, and there wouldn’t be people suffering because of it."
"…"
Red Dust stopped and said, "I will never accept this prearranged fate, nor will I allow anything like this to happen again. So I will break this rule. The most practical and effective way I can think of is to devour you. The Blank Tao, who was supposed to become a stepping stone for others to ascend to Faramita Immortal, will become Faramita Immortal herself, which will surely disrupt the balance of the Heavenly Dao. Therefore, anyone who stands in my way and becomes an obstacle must die!"
"An Lan is an obstacle, so she must die. You, who have been assimilated by An Lan, are also an obstacle, but I cannot kill you. If I kill you, my plan will fail. I cannot directly devour you either because you have consciousness, and you are much stronger than me. If you resist, I will definitely fail. I cannot erase your consciousness directly either, because we share the same origin. If I act rashly, it may cause my own consciousness to disappear too."
"So I can only find another way, and the best way is to let your consciousness disappear on its own. The Monument of the Next World is a good thing that can be utilized. But…"
Red Dust suddenly stopped talking.
This narrow space fell into a deathly silence.
After a long time, Bai Lian, who was in a daze, suddenly raised her head and asked, "Is it because I have become human?"
Red Dust didn’t answer directly. She just waved her hand and conjured up a water mirror in front of Bai Lian.
The image shown in the mirror is a vast and profound starry sky.
Bai Lian stared in a trance and finally, someone appeared in the middle of the picture.
It was her master, her master with blood stains at the corner of her mouth!
Red Dust said indifferently, "By adding up all the countless hours she has spent on these calculations, An Lan would have lived for billions of years. Even if she dies now, she won’t have lost out."
Bai Lian stared tightly at the screen, and after her master, the Eternal Lord also appeared.
Desperate situation.
For her, this is a desperate situation.
For master, this is also a desperate situation!
When the two desperate situations overlapped, a crack appeared in her heart’s despair.
