Light Fortress-Chapter 180 - 167 The Coward

Vines shot up from the ground. 𝗳𝗿𝐞𝕖𝘄𝗲𝕓𝗻𝚘𝚟𝕖𝐥.𝚌𝕠𝕞

Forming a great umbrella.

Thousands of willow strands fell from the edge of the vine umbrella, Zhou Jiren stood underneath, the obscure rain threads absorbed by the withered vines, while the far end of the small street at night was tattered like an old oil painting.

Gu Shen supported his senior sister, gently setting Nan Jin down.

"The reason I knocked her out is that this scene...shouldn’t have been witnessed by her. Sometimes, knowing secrets is itself a trouble. It can cause problems not just for her, but for you too."

Zhou Jiren stood in front of the curtain of rain, lost in thought for a long time, "Your ability is a huge trouble."

Gu Shen was startled.

He came to his teacher’s side and released a strand of Chi Huo.

Without any external stimulus, Chi Huo was exceptionally obedient and gentle, like his own child.

A delicate flame twirled around his fingertips, sometimes leaping, sometimes lying coiled.

"All along, the Council has been searching for a way to ’save the world’... Since you have been to the tenth level under the Flower Banner, then you should also know about the ’Genetic Act,’" Zhou Jiren whispered, "If even the Genetic Act can be approved by the Council, is there anything they wouldn’t do?"

"I can eradicate the ’Order Collapse Black Spots’..."

Gu Shen was somewhat bewildered, he asked softly, "Isn’t that a good thing?"

"Yes... Of course, it is."

Zhou Jiren smiled, but there was no joy in the laughter, instead endless complexity, "It’s a good thing for this world, but for you... it might not be."

"Xiao Gu..."

"If one day, you had to sacrifice yourself to secure peace for this world... how would you choose?"

Zhou Jiren turned his head to look at Gu Shen.

Gu Shen watched the flame in his palm dance to and fro, another tranquil night before his eyes, the world deeply asleep beneath the night sky, everything in sight was serene, all was beautiful.

"Is it only by sacrificing myself that the world can find peace?"

Gu Shen asked softly.

The answer he received was just a faint word.

"...Yes."

"Maybe... I would?"

He scratched his head, somewhat uncomfortable with such a solemn question; the old man had always been careless and unrestrained, suddenly so serious, it was bewildering.

Zhou Jiren looked at him with a skeptical gaze.

"...If you want the truth, forget I said anything," Gu Shen hastily added.

"Who, when not a sage, doesn’t cherish their life?" Zhou Jiren smiled, "My greatest wish is to live to two hundred years old... so if this question was thrown at me, I would choose... no."

"But you are the East Province Grand Judge..."

"What of it?"

Mr. Shu spoke very softly, "The East Province Grand Judge is just a title, it is me now, it could be someone else in the future... The one donning the crown of justice isn’t necessarily a true Devotee willing to sacrifice themselves. So... what does being the East Province Grand Judge have to do with my fear of death and love of life?"

It sounded like an utterly shameless statement.

But... very real.

"The cruelty of this world lies in the fact that when you’re pushed to the crest of the wave, whether you want to or not, it doesn’t matter anymore..."

"If one day my sacrifice was needed for the peace of the millions in the Five Continents."

"Then... I will be sacrificed... that ending has nothing to do with whether I want it, or not."

Zhou Jiren spoke with profound significance, "Do you understand what I mean?"

"I understand... but not completely..."

Gu Shen’s voice grew softer, with a hint of self-mockery, "So, being able to eliminate an ’Order Collapse Black Spot’ is actually an unfortunate thing..."

The first time I met Mr. Shu.

That old fellow threatened me with slice studies, but Gu Shen knew... it was just talk.

But now it’s different.

If the true capabilities of Chi Huo were to leak... all the big shots in the Five Continents Council would be shocked. Gu Shen had a vague notion of what fate awaited him – the countless Order Collapse Black Spots across the Five Continents, including those black spots at the Northern Cause and Effect Fortress, all needed him to "save" them.

Nominally, it’s called saving.

But from that moment on, I lost control over my own destiny.

"That’s not quite right either."

Zhou Jiren chuckled softly, "This is an enormous fortune as well as a great misfortune... it depends on your strength. If you are strong enough, then who would dare to touch you?"

"The council has seven supreme seats, reserved only for those who wield the seeds of fire. Apart from your Chi Huo, the only ones who can completely erase an ’Order Collapse Black Spot’ are the Near-God Persons who hold those seeds. They are regarded as the gospel of humanity’s future, the hope that saves the Five Continents... Indeed, they are beings incomprehensible to mortals, who only need to propagate a thought to dispatch Angel Envoys, carry their unusual Extraordinary Power – isn’t this a force only a ’god’ would possess?"

Mr. Shu looked at Gu Shen and said, "But what if there were someone... who could do all this without needing the seeds of fire... what do you think they would do once they find out?"

Gu Shen broke out in a cold sweat.

"Not everyone possesses a noble and great soul, just as you have seen... even the East Province Grand Judge can have a side that fears death. I still have unfulfilled last wishes, so I must live. And those who inherit great names are not necessarily fair and honorable."

At this point, Zhou Jiren paused.

He sincerely lamented, "It’s worth mentioning that Gu Changzhi is an exception... That guy seems to be made entirely of light, open and firm. If his sacrifice could bring peace to the world, Gu Changzhi would not hesitate to choose to sacrifice himself."

"Gu Changzhi..."

Once again, I heard that name.

A sense of respect naturally arose in Gu Shen’s heart.

Some people, even in death, are mourned by countless people, revered by countless people, and seen as a benchmark by countless people... Gu Changzhi was clearly such a person.

What’s ironic is that although Gu Changzhi isn’t dead, he’s just asleep.

But it’s as though everyone has tacitly accepted that he will never wake up.

"Sometimes I wonder since you both share the surname Gu, could there be any connection between you..." Zhou Jiren glanced at Gu Shen and sneered, "But clearly, sharing the same surname is just a coincidence. There’s not a single similarity between you two in terms of character or ability; you could not be more different, completely people from two different worlds."

Gu Shen felt no shame.

He retorted proudly, "But I’m also afraid of dying... How can there be people in this world who aren’t afraid of death?"

"Indeed... I can’t understand it either."

Zhou Jiren shrugged, "I will never comprehend what men like Gu Changzhi are thinking. Isn’t he afraid of dying? When you die, there’s nothing left."

He stretched out his hand.

Rubbed it.

His palms were dry.

The rain outside had stopped.

"We cannot be Gu Changzhi." The old guy turned around and looked at Gu Shen, "If you’re afraid of dying but still want to contribute to this world, then remember this... no matter what happens to the world, make sure you survive first. Only by staying alive do you have the chance to contribute."

Gu Shen’s expression was complex.

This was not the first time he had heard these words.

Survive.