Chapter 1814: Take the Path That Needs to Be Taken
Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation
When the vanity was gone, all that remained was silence and loneliness.
Bu Fang sat quietly and calmly in the restaurant. The wine was rippling in the cup in his hand.
Opposite him, Dugu Wushuang’s head was hanging low, lifeless. He used to be a Sword G.o.d and a cultivator, but on Planet Immortality, those who did not become immortals were mortals, and life would always come to an end for them. Now, after following Bu Fang for three hundred years, his life finally came to an end.
His life force had been exhausted, and the last wisp of it was turned into a dazzling sword intent that bloomed in the sky. Dugu’s thoughts were simple. Since he was going to die, he wanted to leave one last awesome sight in this world.
And he did. His sword intent caused the whole planet to shake. Countless experts were amazed, and many who stood at the pinnacle of martial arts were terrified. They could feel the invincibility and loneliness powerful enough to tear the void from it.
The sword intent was not weaker than a sword strike of an immortal!
However, the stunning stroke was just the beginning. Everyone on the planet was looking up at the starry sky and was horrified to find many shooting stars descending from outer s.p.a.ce. A ma.s.sive meteor shower shocked the world.
At first, they thought it was just a meteor shower, but they soon found out that they were wrong. When the dazzling light faded away, out of these shooting stars came figures who could walk in the air.
Immortals!
The whole planet was boiling. Everyone knelt on the ground, while countless martial arts experts roared and screamed, their faces covered with desire. The people on Planet Immortality had always searched for the path to immortality, but no one had ever seen one for tens of thousands of years. Now, they finally saw the legendary immortals!
Millions of people became very excited as one immortal after another descended. They knelt, kowtowed, and prayed to the heavens that the immortals would bring them to the path to immortality.
…
Houtu’s gaze was somewhat complicated as she looked at the mortals below. ‘This planet is too backward. The concentration of its spiritual energy is not even one hundredth that of the Primitive Universe. Is this where that man is hiding?’
She sighed. It had been more than three hundred years since that great war—Bu Fang had disappeared for so long. During this time, everything was very calm, but the raging dark tide that existed under this calm was what worried them.
That time, everyone thought the end was coming. After all, Soul G.o.d, who was as formidable as the Primitive Great Path, had descended. However, to everyone’s surprise, the supreme Soul G.o.d was eventually suppressed and sealed by Bu Fang at the cost of losing all his cultivation base.
Down below, countless mortals were kneeling and kowtowing. Houtu could feel wisps of mental force rising into the sky. These were the faith of the mortals. She sighed again.
‘Why is Bu Fang hiding on this planet? Is it just because it’s backward? Did he want to die quietly here in old age? The mortals here are constantly seeking the path to immortality, but they don’t know that a true almighty expert has been hiding among them all along…
‘An immortal living among the mortals… Perhaps he is the only one who could do such a thing.’
…
Houtu landed in the middle of the busy city. She made her appearance look simple and plain so that no mortal could recognize her. With a flash of light, Yang Jian appeared in plain clothes as well. The Celestial Hound was at his heel.
They nodded to each other and looked in the direction of the restaurant, in which they sensed a familiar aura. It was Bu Fang’s aura, but it was so weak that it seemed to go out at any moment.
“Bu Fang…”
Houtu and Yang Jian sighed at the same time, while the Celestial Hound gave a small whine.
They stepped into the restaurant. Inside, the decoration was very comfortable and the atmosphere cozy. Some common flowers and plants were planted in a corner, giving off a fresh scent that filled the air.
Whitey’s dull mechanical eyes turned, glanced briefly at Houtu and Yang Jian as they entered the restaurant, and then ignored them. Eighty was lying listlessly on the ground in a somewhat depressed mood. When it saw them, it just turned its head slightly.
Outside the restaurant, more and more immortals and deities of the Primitive Universe descended. For them, three hundred years was just a snap of the fingers. Bu Fang’s reputation was still being sung among them, and just the name of the Cooking G.o.d who suppressed Soul G.o.d alone was enough to make them travel millions of miles here. They wanted to see him with their own eyes.
When Houtu saw Bu Fang, she gasped and covered her mouth with disbelief in her eyes. His hair was all white now, his face was wrinkled, and he was clad in a tattered robe. His former paralyzed face was still faintly visible, but its sharpness was softened by wisdom now. ‘How did he become so old?’
Yang Jian’s expression was complicated. For mortals, three hundred years of life was already the limit. Had it not been for his extraordinary fleshly body, Bu Fang would have died in the two-hundredth year. Although he had transformed into a mortal, he could not have aged like this. With his previous foundation, he needed only a little cultivation to become an Immortal King and attain immortality.
‘Did he give up cultivation himself?’ Yang Jian could not help but think.
When the Celestial Hound saw Bu Fang, it ran over and licked his face with an excited look in its eyes. Bu Fang rubbed its head. Looking at it, he could not help but think of Lord Dog. To Lord Dog, Nethery, and the others, three hundred years was just a snap of the fingers, but to Bu Fang, it was almost a lifetime.
Different people viewed time differently depending on how high they stood. If Bu Fang were an immortal, three hundred years would have pa.s.sed in a flash. But to mortals, three hundred years were three lifetimes.
“You…”
Houtu wanted to say something, but Bu Fang lifted his withered hand and waved at her. “You don’t have to say anything… Do me a favor.” He raised his head, his cloudy eyes looking up at Houtu.
That gave Houtu pause.
Bu Fang pointed to Dugu Wushuang, who sat opposite him with his head hung low, and said, “This boy has followed me for three hundred years. If he had drawn his sword and cut the void a hundred years ago, he would have had a chance to become an immortal. Unfortunately, he gave up that opportunity and chose to continue to follow me. Now, I want you to help me bring him back to life.”
Yang Jian and Houtu turned to Wushuang, their eyes flickering. Although the latter had died from losing all his life force, the sword intent left in his body was terrifying.
‘Can a mere mortal also attain such a terrifying sword intent?! Sure enough, none of those who followed Bu Fang are ordinary…’
Houtu nodded. With Bu Fang’s status and station, it was not too much to ask this. Planet Immortality’s lives were also in the Transmigration of the Primitive Universe, so of course she could save Wushuang. She raised her hand. With energy swirling in her palm, she tapped lightly as if she was picking a leaf.
Wushuang had only died not too long ago, so his soul had not yet dissipated. With the guidance of Houtu’s energy, it was quickly gathered. Although he was the so-called Sword G.o.d, he was no different from a mortal in their eyes.
Meanwhile, Yang Jian lifted his hand and flicked his fingers. A stream of energy flew out and fell on Wushuang, and then his old body began to recover at a rate visible to the naked eye. Soon, he was back to his younger days. It was as if time had been turned back three hundred years in his body.
Of course, Yang Jian’s approach was not about reversing time. He merely helped Wushuang restore his life force, allowing his body to be filled with vitality again.
With the return of his soul and the restoration of his youthful body, Wushuang soon opened his eyes. He gasped for air, and his forehead was covered with beads of sweat.
‘I’m dead? No… I’m not dead! I’m alive again?! How can I be alive again? My life has come to an end, and I’ve even seen the Transmigration… How did I come back to life?!’
Wushuang looked down at his body. The flesh that was bursting with life force made him suck in a cold breath. “I…” he opened his mouth. He saw Houtu and Yang Jian, then turned his head to see Bu Fang sitting not far away. ‘Did Immortal Master save me? Did he finally make a move?’
“Owner Bu, come back with us. You can cultivate again. When Soul G.o.d breaks the seal, we need you to suppress him again.” Houtu looked at Bu Fang with eager eyes. Saving Wushuang was just a matter of pa.s.sing, and getting Bu Fang back to the Primitive Universe was the most important task.
Yang Jian did not say anything but just looked at Bu Fang with antic.i.p.ation. The Celestial Hound stuck out its tongue and licked Bu Fang’s face. Everyone was waiting for his answer.
In the sky, Lord Bird’s body was shrouded in a mist. Looking at Bu Fang, he sighed, then disappeared into the void again.
For three hundred years, he had witnessed Bu Fang’s transformation, which took place in the deepest of his soul. He also watched Bu Fang’s cooking skills grow. He never imagined that at Bu Fang’s level, his cooking skills could still rise at such a speed.
Now, every dish that Bu Fang cooked contained the most genuine and pure emotions. This impressed Lord Bird. When they were at the relics of the ancient HeavenG.o.ds, they had discussed cooking. At that time, Bu Fang insisted that the quality of the ingredients determined the standard of the cuisine.
Lord Bird had refuted that with a jar of HeavenG.o.d Husband and Wife Wine. Little did he know that hundreds of years later, Bu Fang would give up the path he had been insisting on and embark on the path of emotional cooking, fusing emotions in every dish just like the Husband and Wife Wine.
But the path of emotional cooking was even harder to walk. It could hardly reach the end, for some emotions could only be witnessed by death.
For three hundred years, Lord Bird had been hiding in the void and guarding Bu Fang. He witnessed how Bu Fang comprehended the emotional path by traveling the planet, starting from the first emotion for the villagers to the emotions he saw in his journey across the land.
Bu Fang walked around the globe as a spectator, witnessing many emotions and combining them. Now, he had been stripped of all the glitz and dross, and all that remained to him was the essence.
Unfortunately, the emotional path was not so simple to walk after all.
…
Bu Fang shook his head, raised his cup, and finished the wine in one gulp. He turned his head to Wushuang. “You are an immortal now. Are you staying, or are you going to leave?” he asked. The look in his eyes was indifferent, so calm that it left Houtu and Yang Jian a little scared.
Wushuang was still somewhat confused—he needed to gather his thoughts. ‘I’m already an immortal?’ With a thought in his mind, the energy in him surged. His face turned red.
After following Bu Fang for three hundred years, the sword intent he had comprehended had long since been able to shatter the void. Although his comprehension was not as profound as that of Bu Fang, his doubts were often answered by Bu Fang during the process. As a result, his sword was not a ruthless sword, but an emotional sword that incorporated his own emotions.
“Immortal Master… Wushuang swears to follow you to death!” He knelt on the ground and looked at Bu Fang excitedly.
Bu Fang nodded and said nothing more to Wushuang. Then, he told Houtu and Yang Jian to leave.
“Leave me alone. I will return when it’s time, and if I can’t, everything will have to follow the rules. The Country Painting can only suppress Soul G.o.d for a thousand years. If I force my return, I won’t be able to stop him when he breaks the seal, so it is pointless,” Bu Fang said.
“I’ve paid what I owe. Now, all I have to do is walk the path I need to walk.”
Bu Fang’s words caused Houtu and Yang Jian to frown. They could not guess what he was thinking, and they were helpless about his stubbornness. With no other way to pursue him, they left the restaurant.
However, the other immortals and deities kept entering the restaurant to visit Bu fang. When he could no longer stand to be disturbed again and again, he asked Whitey, who had been silent for a long time, to throw them out. After a few immortals were stripped naked, these curious little immortals and deities finally quieted down.
Wushuang was horrified. Only now did he realize that the muddle-headed puppet was so fearsome!
The immortals took up residence outside the restaurant. Time flew, and two hundred years had pa.s.sed again.