Refining the Mountains and Rivers

After today, another resident appeared in the ruins of the Commander's Mansion. At first Wang Chao only hoped to use Shang Yuntai to open up an opportunity for him to beg for mercy from Qin Yu. However, as they lived together, they discovered that they got along unexpectedly well. This was what a so-called confidant should be like. Everyone drank together and chatted together, as if they had been friends for many years.

Seeing Shang Yuntai's despondency and his apparent indifference towards his life or death, Wang Chao didn't say anything about it, but he did find Fu Shan in private and requested to find him a skilled healer.

The following attempts at treatment left Shang Yuntai moved. Although he didn't believe there was any hope, he didn't want to disappoint Wang Chao's good intentions. The results of the consultations weren't good. The various healers expressed that they weren't confident they could eliminate the poisons.

As Wang Chao was disappointed, a medical expert offered an out-of-the-box suggestion. Since coral poison was effective, perhaps it was possible to use poison to treat poison.

The general idea was that since Shang Yuntai had already approached death's door, why not make a final bet to see if it worked? Perhaps this method might accelerate his coming death, but if it succeeded there was a chance he could live.

However, the medical expert explicitly stated that although this method had a chance of success, it would also cause enormous damage to the patient himself. If he didn't manage to endure it, he would die. Wang Chao hesitated over and over before telling Shang Yuntai about this method.

Shang Yuntai was silent for a long time. Then he asked, "What are the chances?"

Wang Chao originally raised three fingers. But underneath the other person's heavy gaze, he took two fingers down and said, "10%..."

His voice was rough.

Shang Yuntai suddenly smiled. "A 10% chance is already considerable. I am someone that is going to die anyways, so there is nothing for me to be dissatisfied about."

In the past, he had fallen into a poison trap. From being a chosen pride of heaven, he crashed to being worthless waste of his generation. The amount of shame and humiliation he suffered during that period was incalculable. Moreover, the pain that corroded his organs was like 10,000 bugs constantly gnawing at him all the time. If it weren't for him have a firm will he would have already committed suicide.

Shang Yuntai persisted all this time. Although he had felt despair, he never truly gave up struggling because he didn't want to submit to destiny. If it weren't for the betrayal of the woman he loved, perhaps his proud heart would still insist on pushing him forwards until he toppled into the infinite abyss.

Entering the Endless Sea was the last dignity he allowed himself. He didn't want to bear all those sympathetic gazes, quietly waiting around until his death arrived.

But life was unpredictable. When Shang Yuntai had given up, another chance had been given to him to survive. And more importantly, Shang Yuntai knew that Wang Chao was the personal guard of the current Commander, and that Commander was the white sun boundary talent who had shaken the entire Demonic Path.

This meant that as long as he could struggle and survive, perhaps it wouldn't be too long before he could return to the Demonic Path once more.

The plot he had fallen for during the True Demon Guard test in the past, the shame he had withstood all these years, the final stab in his heart by the woman he loved…could Shang Yuntai really be indifferent towards all of this? He couldn't. It was just that he wasn't capable of changing anything so he could only quietly endure it.

But now, a chance had appeared in front of him. Although the hopes of success were very, very small, what did he have to lose? Rather than waiting for death to arrive, he might as well go crazy one last time. Within the pain he would either undergo nirvanic rebirth or plunge to his own death.

Shang Yuntao began to eat a massive amount of corals that contained inherent poisons. This sort of thing was light blue in color with spots on their surface. The color wasn't beautiful, the smell was sour, and the taste was acridly bitter.

But Shang Yuntai ate calmly. He used a wooden spoon to eat in great heaps, his face calm as he devoured the corals that had been smashed into a paste.

The absorption rate of the coral poisons was extremely fast. Before he finished eating, the two poisons would begin to fight each other in Shang Yuntai's dilapidated body. His complexion grew increasingly pale. Even if all his strength was exhausted, the hand that grabbed the wooden bucket still moved. When he finished eating, his entire body was drenched in sweat.

Wang Chao spoke to the doctor privately. After he learned about how great this pain was, he could no longer suppress the pain in his eyes. But, Shang Yuntai actually smiled at him, "Brother Wang, there is no need to be like this. To strive for life when I'm already halfway dead, this is something I must experience myself. If I can be reborn in the end, who cares if this pain is ten times or even a hundred times worse?"

When the two poisons in his body formed an initial balance, the pain coursing through him was slightly relieved. Shang Yuntai began to move through Commander's Mansion. Almost all of his cultivation was frozen by the poisons. He could only use the primitive method of moving about to get his blood energy moving in order to speed up the metabolism of the poisons.

Eventually Wang Chao could no longer bear to see his good friend suffer such pain every day. After helping him eat coral, he left to look for some pain reducing medicines that wouldn't come into conflict with the poisons. But because Shang Yuntai had used countless medicines over the years, his body had already developed resistances to many of them, so his progress wasn't smooth.

Hu -

Hu -

Shang Yuntai gasped for breath. Each heaving breath was like a cold knife stabbing into his chest. The pain of his flesh being ripped open left him shuddering. A cold sweat dripped down his chin and fell to the ground.

Shang Yuntai struggled to stand up and not fall. He was afraid that if he fell down here, he wouldn't have the chance to stand up once more. Black spots began to appear in his field of vision, emerging and dispersing all around.

Qin Yu stood silently in his quiet courtyard, a bit of surprise in his eyes. He remembered this Demonic Path cultivator from when he first entered Heavenly Demon City. Although there had been something wrong with his aura at the time, there had been a solemn dignity around him. Seeing him again today, his situation clearly wasn't good.

Even though they were far away, he could still feel how incomparably weak Shang Yuntai's body was. Looking at his shaking body, even a gust of wind could blow him down.

Thinking about it, Qin Yu walked over. He didn't conceal his footsteps but the wavering Shang Yuntai was fighting the rising weakness in his body so he wasn't able to discover him nearby.

"I can't fall here…I can't fall here…I want to live…I want to survive…"

The quiet voice entered Qin Yu's ears, leaving him stunned. As he looked at Shang Yuntai who was struggling to live, his thoughts were flung far back into the past, towards memories that he didn't want to remember.

Because in the medicine garden where the wild boar managed to break in and damage the precious spirit plants, he had been ruthlessly and mercilessly beaten. Although he just about managed to survive, a deadly ailment had been left in his body.

The feeling of clearly sensing your own condition worsening constantly was like a poisonous snake wrapped around your body in the darkness. It was cold and frightening, leaving a person drowning in despair.

In the past, whenever he finished his daily work, he would try to eat some more and then desperately run to get his blood flowing. His distressed appearance then was similar to this man in front of him right now.

Qin Yu and Shang Yuntai had only met once, and this person hadn't even said half a word to him. Qin Yu wasn't some good person with a great deal of compassion, and normally he wouldn't get himself involved in the destiny of others. He had received Wang Chao and his two brothers and had also obtained the approval of the Holy Nether Guard. He didn't need any more people beneath him.

But what Qin Yu saw in front of him touched his innermost feelings. He couldn't help but think of them both as people who had suffered similar pains in the past. If it weren't for the little blue lamp then he would have died in the valley during that night many years ago. Perhaps he would have been hurriedly buried, becoming bones in the ground that no one remembered.

So now, why didn't he make another 'little blue lamp' to illuminate the life of someone else as they were on the cusp of despair? Qin Yu's thoughts constantly raced.

The suffering Shang Yuntai never would have imagined that from this moment on, his destiny would move a different direction, crossing into a new direction and ushering in a new future.

Qin Yu let out a breath and his chaotic thoughts returned to tranquility. When Shang Yuntai left, he didn't call out for him.

Watching Shang Yuntai leave, Qin Yu turned back into the stone house. In this world, there were no gains without reason. When he obtained the little blue lamp he had put forth his complete strength and passed through a tempering of life and death.

Qin Yu decided to set up a final test for this person. He wanted to see whether or not he had a strong enough will to survive. If this person already decided to give up, why should he help save him?

The next day, Shang Yuntai was running.

The third day, he was still running.

Then there was the fourth day, fifth day…it was only on the 23rd day that Shang Yuntai's figure didn't appear any longer.

In a room filled with the scent of medicine, Wang Chao watched as Shang Yuntai struggled to lift a hand, spooning the disgusting coral paste into his mouth. Finally, he couldn't suppress himself and said, "Old Shang, stop forcing yourself!"

Shang Yuntai was startled. He dropped the spoon back into the bucket. Because he couldn't control himself, there was a dull thump as the spoon crashed down. He let out a long breath and raised his head with effort, smiling at Wang Chao, "I've long since wanted to say that this coral is really damn hard to eat…Old Wang, I'm sorry, but it seems that I will have to disappoint all your efforts…

"To survive when you're on the verge of death, it's easy to say this, but only the person experiencing this journey could really understand how hard, how incredibly hard it is…I want to endure, but in the end…"

His voice gradually lowered and his breathing became weaker.

Wang Chao's eyes turned red. "Old Shang, don't go to sleep. My Commander is going to leave seclusion soon. Perhaps his cultivation cannot compare to some great figures we have seen before, but in reality his methods are amongst some of the fiercest in this world. You know Huang Shan, right? That simple and honest fellow who is actually quite wretched inside, well he was struck by a deadly poison not too long ago and it was the Lord Commander who saved him. He only had to reach out a hand and before I could respond he had already pulled Third Brother back from death's door.

"I'm not bragging, I'm really not bragging. You have to believe me. Hurry up and open your eyes. If you fall asleep like this, will you really accept such a fate?"

These words seemed to stimulate Shang Yuntai. His eyes opened a sliver. There was a great fear in the depths of them, one that only someone on the border of death would feel.

"I originally thought…that I didn't fear death…but now it seems I…overestimated myself…Old Wang…I don't want to die…"

He didn't want to die, yet he had no choice but to die. Perhaps this was the greatest and most helpless sorrow in the world.

Wang Chao's eyes flushed red and tears flowed down his cheeks. He had seen many partings through death, but it was only today that he truly felt how desperate a person was when death came for them.

The door to the room was suddenly shoved open. In Old Wang's tear-filled eyes, Qin Yu walked in. His expression was calm and faint, and there was an unexplainable dignity in his eyes.

Many, many years from now, Wang Chao would still remember Qin Yu's expression today. It was a sight carved into the depths of his heart, one that he would never forget.

"Remember the despair and unwillingness you feel today, because from this day forwards you are no longer free. I will take you away from death, but you must use your life to repay me."

Qin Yu lifted a hand and placed a finger between Shang Yuntai's eyebrows. Surging black gas rolled out, as if a great snake was emerging from beneath his skin. The snake furiously struggled before it was swallowed up. Shang Yuntai's eyes widened and he stared at Qin Yu, as if wanting to imprint his appearance in his mind.

After a long time, Shang Yuntai's chest fell. As all of the poison acc.u.mulated in his body over the years was drawn out, he closed his eyes and dozed off.

At this moment, Qin Yu became keenly aware of something. Shang Yuntai would repay today's graciousness with his life. Similarly, in the future he would inevitably need to pay some steep price to the little blue lamp.

A brief moment of panic rose in his heart. Qin Yu couldn't help but feel a tinge of fear. But soon, he suppressed this emotion and his heart returned to serenity. He had already walked too far down this road and had become one with the little blue lamp; it was impossible for them to be separated. If so, then why not thrust out his chest and openly face everything. He was confident he could withstand it.

Wang Chao looked at Qin Yu's profile in stunned disbelief. He discovered that the atmosphere around him seemed to change once more, as if he were a mountain as high as the heavens, capable of picking down the stars in the skies.