Volume 1 Volume 6 Chapter 104

Volume 6 Chapter 104: Fate and Choice (12)

"Are you Zhang Xusheng?"

Xu Qingfan stared closely at the mysterious middle-aged scholar who suddenly appeared before him and slowly asked in a surprisingly calm voice.

For cultivators today, the name Zhang Xusheng means everything.

Even if you hate him, you must acknowledge his uniqueness; even if you stand against him, you must understand that his journey and growth are a legendary tale that cannot be replicated.

Xu Qingfan had often wondered what would happen when he met Zhang Xusheng—would he draw his sword? Argue with him? Or simply turn and run away? He considered all possibilities but never imagined he would treat it so calmly. The great master, now in front of Xu Qingfan, felt like an equal presence.

Soon he would die; even if the person before him was Zhang Xusheng, what was there to fear?

Zhang Xusheng looked at Xu Qingfan with great interest; Xu Qingfan’s eyes were calm and still, showing no signs of falsehood in his composure and peace.

Seeing Xu Qingfan like this, Zhang Xusheng no longer hid his identity and smiled while nodding slightly, "It really is me. How did you guess?"

"There are definitely no more than ten people in the world with your strength, and there is only one person with your special traits: Zhang Xusheng." Xu Qingfan looked straight into Zhang Xusheng’s deep, mysterious eyes, without a trace of fear, and said calmly, "The most important thing is you just mentioned that you almost died twice recently, which reminds me of the battle that should be over by now— the fight between my Righteous Alliance and Zhang Xusheng. Only the masters of the Righteous Alliance could nearly cause a skilled expert like you to face death."

Zhang Xusheng nodded slightly and said, "I see, I thought you remembered my face."

Suddenly remembering something, Zhang Xusheng asked, "By the way, the failed experiments under my headquarters’ dungeon, you released them, right? And you also destroyed the ‘Three Talent Formation’?"

Xu Qingfan was slightly taken aback and asked, "How did you know?"

Zhang Xusheng smiled and said, "When that monster appeared, I guessed it had to be you sneaking in. I just didn’t think you could cause such destruction. Those old guys from the Righteous Alliance forced me into a corner this time, and you have half the credit for that. Hehe, I thought I had calculated everything in my life, but I didn’t expect to fall into your hands."

"You shouldn’t underestimate me."

As the conversation deepened, Xu Qingfan’s mind became more and more peaceful. He turned and continued to look at the sunset that seemed very close to him and said softly.

"Yes, I did underestimate you. Unknowingly, you have grown to this extent, in strength, intellect, and perseverance."

Zhang Xusheng nodded in agreement.

"I ruined your big moment, you should hate me, but I don’t feel that way."

Xu Qingfan suddenly spoke.

"Why should I hate you?" Zhang Xusheng shook his head. "Life is full of fun because of surprises. A fate that is all planned out is too boring. Sure, I failed this time and almost died twice, but I don’t feel anger or regret; I just feel it’s interesting, you know? I haven’t had this feeling for a long time. If everything in life comes too easily, then life becomes dull. A life with challenges and ups and downs is truly meaningful."

Zhang Xusheng smiled lightly as he spoke, but like Xu Qingfan, he gazed at the setting sun, his eyes flickering, lost in thought and memories.

After that, Zhang Xusheng stopped talking, and Xu Qingfan chose silence too. Both silently watched the sunset, two completely different people sitting side by side, and the atmosphere was surprisingly harmonious and calm.

After a long silence, with half of the sun already below the horizon, Xu Qingfan suddenly coughed twice, spitting out a large amount of blood mixed with bits of liver. His gaze was vacant, his skin becoming more ashen, and in that moment, even the "Holy Spirit Buddhist Relic" could not effectively stop his body from falling apart.

Accompanied by Little Black’s cries, Xu Qingfan was about to fall to the ground, and at that moment, Death God finally appeared before Xu Qingfan, ready to take everything from him.

If there is only one person in this world who could slightly delay Death God’s approach, that person is Zhang Xusheng.

Suddenly, Zhang Xusheng reached out and caught Xu Qingfan’s falling body. As his hands touched Xu Qingfan, a soft and mysterious power entered Xu Qingfan’s body. After circulating once, Xu Qingfan was surprised to find that the speed of his body breaking down had slowed down significantly, giving him a little more time to survive.

"Thank you."

Xu Qingfan wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth and said, breathless.

"No problem."

Zhang Xusheng smiled, nodded, and spoke casually, as if they were old friends who had known each other for years.

After breathing for a long time, Xu Qingfan finally calmed down, looked at Zhang Xusheng in front of him, and said, "I have made many guesses about what kind of person you are, but I never expected you to be like this…"

Halfway through his sentence, Xu Qingfan stopped, unsure how to describe it, or that a master of the dark ways, so rare throughout the years, could have such a calm conversation with him at this moment was itself an astonishing thing.

Zhang Xusheng stood up, laughed heartily, and said, "What kind of person am I? No one in the world can truly understand, not even I know what I am really thinking or what kind of person I am."

"Yes, it’s irrational, and you never know what you will do next, it really is hard to deal with."

Xu Qingfan wanted to stand up like Zhang Xusheng, but he found he had no strength left, so he simply gave up and responded lightly.

"Actually, you are very much like me," Zhang Xusheng suddenly said. "Or rather, I was very much like my former self, in both experiences and character."

"You have only seen me once, so how can you dare to say we are alike? No one in the world can say they are like you. You are unique, you think too highly of me and too lowly of yourself."

Xu Qingfan said. When he mentioned "only seen you once," he was referring to over a hundred years ago when Zhang Xusheng disguised himself as a Mahayana Stage master in "Penance Valley" to help him stop the Southern Wasteland’s "Magic Pearl" chaos. At that time, Xu Qingfan regarded Zhang Xusheng as a respected senior, but not long after, Zhang Xusheng severely weakened the Jiuhua lineage, almost erasing them from the cultivation world.

"We have not only met once. In fact, without you knowing, I have observed you many times. I understand you better than you can imagine, and my interest in you surpasses anyone else’s. We both come from Jiuhua and were once Deacon Elders there. We were ordinary, but we both have potential that others do not possess. Our paths in cultivation are unlike any walked by our predecessors, and like you, I used to stubbornly cling to responsibility and value respect for teachers."

"Ha!" Upon hearing Zhang Xusheng say this, Xu Qingfan couldn’t help but laugh suddenly. Perhaps the only good thing about being close to death was not caring anymore; if he wanted to laugh, he would laugh.

Zhang Xusheng sighed softly, his sigh seemingly carrying the weight of many years, and he said gently, "I spoke of a long time ago. Back then, your ancestral master had just entered Jiuhua. I was perhaps even more proud and solitary than you then, more like Feng Qingtian, but in essence, I was much more like you."

Xu Qingfan stopped laughing. Indeed, he had heard Mr. Liu say that before Zhang Xusheng left Jiuhua, he had a good reputation in the cultivation world, "a gentle but somewhat stubborn scholar." That was Mr. Liu’s assessment of Zhang Xusheng at that time.

But why had Zhang Xusheng become like this now? Surely, there must be a reason, but at that moment, Xu Qingfan had no interest in knowing; he simply sighed softly and said, "Unfortunately, that was a long time ago. You are ultimately not the same as before. And I will not become who you are now; after all, we are still different."

Zhang Xusheng seemed to think of something, a strange light flickered in his eyes, and a faint smile appeared on his lips as he said, "Perhaps if you experienced what I have, your character would be exactly like mine now."

However, Xu Qingfan did not understand the hidden meanings in Zhang Xusheng’s words. He said to himself, "You know, when I accidentally entered your base before and saw everything there, your various setups, I always thought, how wonderful it would be if you were a righteous person? If you were a righteous person, under your leadership, the cultivation world would not have so many disasters and troubles. What a pity…"

"Some things are not as simple as they seem," Zhang Xusheng said calmly. "When the Heavenly Way decides that you will walk the evil path, you cannot resist."

"No, as long as you have such thoughts and determination, how could you fall into the evil path? Ultimately, it is just that you cannot control the evil thoughts and ambitions in your heart."

Xu Qingfan shook his head and began to lecture in front of Zhang Xusheng, as if it was a habit.

Zhang Xusheng smiled slightly, but did not take it to heart. He suddenly said, "Do you want to know why I have become what I am now?"

Xu Qingfan glanced at Zhang Xusheng, coughed up some blood, and said softly, "You speak, I will listen."

"I told you, long ago, I was very much like you. At that time, I greatly admired my master. Unfortunately, he died of old age, fulfilling his destiny. Then I thought, could I create another way to escape the need for cultivators to struggle for a long time just to extend their lifespan a little? But even that extended lifespan is not enough for cultivators to break through to the next level. After years of exploration, I created the secret methods I practice now, taking the essence of the world for myself, allowing me to have an endless lifespan…"

"And then, you were tainted by evil energy?"

It was a simple story, and Xu Qingfan had already guessed the ending.

"Yes, the dark energy invaded my mind, and without realizing it, what I did started to slip out of my control. Zhang Hualing is a character too; he used secret methods I have been exploring for hundreds of years, yet he is still affected by the dark energy. Moreover, back then, I relied only on my own exploration, and the dark energy had deeply invaded my mind without me knowing. By the time I realized, it was too late. The thought of finding a new path for the cultivators in this world has long disappeared."

Zhang Xusheng shook his head and sighed.

After a moment of silence, Xu Qingfan shook his head and said lightly, "Don’t make yourself sound so great, and don’t compare yourself to the Sect Master; he has fought against the dark energy for over a hundred years."

Zhang Xusheng smiled slightly and said, "How do you know I haven’t tried?"

"You’ve tried?"

Xu Qingfan asked back.

Zhang Xusheng had a self-deprecating smile and slowly said, "The world thinks I, Zhang Xusheng, am a madman, acting irrationally, constantly biting at those strong people who pose no threat to me, like the Righteous Alliance, like the Zhong family, like the ‘Ming’ organization. But for those who are not strong yet, but could potentially threaten me in the future, I always let them go easily and even try to help them grow, like Feng Qingtian, like Zhang Yi, and like… you!"

Xu Qingfan listened quietly, feeling puzzled and amazed by this.

"I once thought I did this just to pass the boring days and find real excitement. But one time, a friend of mine, codenamed ‘Xuan,’ clearly pointed out that everything I did was seeking death! In that moment, I suddenly understood that it truly was like that; everything I did was indeed seeking death. A long time ago, Zhang Xusheng was not completely unaware of the dark energy’s invasion; he kept influencing me, influencing me to seek out stronger opponents, influencing me to nurture my enemies, until the moment I was completely destroyed, because he understood better than anyone how great a danger I posed to this world."

Upon hearing this, Xu Qingfan was taken aback. He had never thought that everything Zhang Xusheng had done and sought after was actually self-destruction.

"So, once you understood, you never tried to stop it?"

Xu Qingfan asked.

Zhang Xusheng smiled slightly and replied, "Why stop it? I said before, this is what makes life meaningful."

Xu Qingfan grimaced. Under the influence of dark thoughts and the obsession with self-destruction, Zhang Xusheng’s ideas were indeed different from others.

"It’s a pity," Zhang Xusheng sighed. "So far, no one has been able to kill me or stop me. When Zizhen and Liu Ji teamed up against me, I thought I was about to die. Unfortunately, they were still a bit short."

While speaking, Zhang Xusheng turned to look at Xu Qingfan, his eyes sparkling with an indescribable light, like a child who had just received a long-desired toy.

"Through this battle, I realized that only I, Zhang Xusheng, can destroy myself, or another Zhang Xusheng can do it. I cannot kill myself. I still have many wicked thoughts in my mind that I want to realize. So, perhaps I could create another Zhang Xusheng and have an opponent who is very much like me; that would be quite interesting. And you resemble me so much from back then; with some changes, you might even become another version of me."

Hearing Zhang Xusheng say this, Xu Qingfan finally became alert, struggling to get up but falling back onto the yellow sand. He stared at Zhang Xusheng, guarded, and coldly asked, "What do you mean? What do you want to do?"

Zhang Xusheng smiled slightly at the corners of his mouth. In that moment, the calm and gentle atmosphere between them disappeared, and Zhang Xusheng once again became the mysterious and fearless master of the dark arts he had been before.

"This is the arrangement of the Heavenly Way. Otherwise, why would I meet you right after I had these thoughts?" Zhang Xusheng said with a smile, "Earlier, you seemed to disapprove of me becoming a person of darkness when evil energy invaded and I did nothing. Now, let’s see what you would do in a similar situation. Can you keep the goodness in your heart? Or will you turn into someone like me?"

"What do you want to do?"

Xu Qingfan felt a sense of foreboding rise in his heart and asked coldly.

"You should still remember this, right? After all, we first met because of this thing. I also started to pay attention to you because of this. If I hadn’t seen you this time, I would have forgotten I even had this collection."

As he spoke, Zhang Xusheng raised his hands slightly, and a black bead the size of a fist suddenly appeared in his hand.

As the black bead appeared, the "World Defying Sword" beside Xu Qingfan let out an excited long cry, and the demonic energy around it surged.

"’Nine Demon Bead’! So it was still in your hands."

Xu Qingfan spoke slowly, as if he had already thought about the fate that awaited him.