Su Li expressionlessly said, "The southerners' best and last chance was lost just like that. What will they thank me for? Other than thinking that I'm a madman, the people of Zhou won't thank me. "
Chen Changsheng thought it over, then said, "… Not liking, not thanking, does not mean that they want Senior to die."
Su Li said, "In the blink of an eye, ten-odd years have passed. Tianhai, old man Yin, and that woman from Holy Maiden Peak still wholeheartedly want the confluence of north and south, but I still don't agree. If I don't agree, Mount Li won't agree, and the Longevity Sect won't agree. The confluence of north and south … will forever be a large flat cake drawn on paper. Tell me, do these Saints not want me to die? "
Hearing Su Li's words, Chen Changsheng fell silent for a very long time. Thinking back to when he had just left the Garden of Zhou and the great battle array he had seen on the snowy plains, he said, "The demons … also want Senior to die."
"Don't you think this is very absurd? Remember, the enemy of an enemy is not necessarily a friend, because there is something called benefit in the middle. If I die, the continent will be thrown into turmoil, and the Demon Lord and Tianhai are also the two most confident people in the world. They are confident that they can use the chaos to obtain what they want, so of course they want me to die. "
Chen Changsheng looked at Su Li and said very seriously and sincerely, "Senior, then why don't you support the confluence of north and south? No matter how you look at it, this matter is beneficial to the human race. "
"Do I have to do things that are beneficial to the human race? Fine, these words are too much like the words of a great villain. I take them back. "
Su Li looked at him and calmly said, "But can you answer a question of mine? What's the difference between being ruled by Tianhai and being ruled by the demons?"
Chen Changsheng really wanted to say that the difference was too great. A war between races could easily lead to the danger of extinction, while a war between humans was just a question of who lowered their heads. However, he knew that to a person like Su Li, being ruled was in itself an unacceptable situation. There truly was not much difference between the two.
"Senior, could it be that the world in your eyes has always been so dark?"
"It's not dark, but colorless, cold ice. I've said it before, it's benefit."
"Could it be … that we can't think of the world in a positive light?" This was already the third time Chen Changsheng had asked a similar question.
"No, because such things have happened many times in the past. The so-called history is nothing more than the current evidence, and the so-called present is nothing more than the repetition of history." Su Li looked at him and said, "I don't want to become the second Zhou Dufu, so no matter if it's the demons or you people of Zhou, I won't believe them."
The black willow forest became silent again. After a long period of silence, Chen Chang Sheng suddenly opened his mouth and asked, "Senior, are you teaching me?"
From the moment they entered the stronghold, Su Li and Chen Changsheng began to converse more. Afterwards, no matter if it was the encounter with the assassins or the Great Zhou cavalry, or the seemingly casual but actually rather meaningful choice of topic, they all indicated that Su Li was trying to teach Chen Changsheng a few things — how to view this world and how to continue living.
Su Li looked at him and said with slight mockery, "Isn't it a little too late to understand now? Rumor has it that you are well-versed in the Daoist Canon, but why can't I see the slightest bit of comprehension in you? "
"But … why is that?"
Chen Changsheng did not care about this senior's mockery, but he was rather puzzled. He was a person of Zhou, and Su Li was a southerner. He was the founding monster of the new generation that the Orthodoxy had focused on nurturing, while Su Li was the Great Freedom of the Way of the Sword. The two of them originally had no connection, and the camps they belonged to were even secretly hostile. Not to mention the terrible relationship between the Orthodox Academy and the Mount Li Sword Sect, and the possible competition between him and Qiushan Jun in the past and in the future. Su Li had no reason to teach him like a teacher.
"Because I admire you very much." Su Li looked at him expressionlessly and said, "Is this reason enough?"
Chen Changsheng very honestly shook his head and said, "Senior, of course it's not enough."
Su Li was somewhat at a loss for words. If it were any other junior who was so patiently taught by him, they would not be moved to tears. At the very least, after he had given them a reason, they would definitely not continue to pursue the matter. He looked at the clear and bright eyes of the youth and suddenly laughed. He thought to himself, that's right. If this kid wasn't this kind of person, how could he have caught my temper?
"Because I hope that you can live on well, the longer you live, the better," he said seriously to Chen Changsheng.
Chen Changsheng was slightly startled. He thought to himself, could it be that Senior knows about my severed meridians and that I don't have long to live?
Su Li's following words indicated that he did not know this secret. He said, "Because only by living long enough can you become strong enough. I hope that you can continue to be strong, until the very end."
"What's the very end?"
"The next Pope."
"… Senior hopes that I become the next Pope?"
"Correct, because if you become the Pope, it's the best thing for the southerners."
"Why?"
"Because you're not willing to kill people, and even more so, you won't revel in killing people. You're very clear about everything other than life and death. I've never seen a young man at your age that doesn't care about fame and fortune … of course, your obsession with my Yellow Paper Umbrella sometimes makes me begin to doubt my own judgement."
"I don't know how Senior saw that I don't care about fame and fortune … but can I become the Pope just like this?"
Chen Changsheng subconsciously looked at the dusky sky, looked at the snowflakes falling from an unknown height, and said, "It feels so far away."
Su Li looked at him with some interest and said, "Could it be that you've never had this sort of awareness?"
Chen Changsheng withdrew his gaze and asked in a slight daze, "What awareness?"
"The Li Palace attaches so much importance to you and nurtures you, making you the youngest upper level Ethereal Opening cultivator in history, the youngest Principal of the Orthodox Academy … if they didn't want you to become the next Pope, what did those old fellows want to do?"
Chen Changsheng was silent. He now knew why His Eminence Bishop Mei Lisha was so concerned about him, and what the Pope was thinking.
After leaving the Mausoleum of Books, all the mysteries had long since been answered. But he had never been very clear about this matter, and subconsciously did not want to remember it. Too many things had happened in the Garden of Zhou, so much so that he believed that he had truly forgotten about this matter. Only now did Su Li wake him up.
He was the successor of the Orthodoxy.
However, his gaze still habitually fell on a place not far in front of him. He was not used to raising his head to look at the sky. Whether it was the dusky sky or the clear blue sky, the light was always so dazzling. If he returned to the capital, as the successor of the Orthodoxy, he might have to directly face the Divine Empress' dignity. This made him very uneasy. Of course, he first had to return to the capital.
… …
… …
(Today, the leader was celebrating his birthday. He only returned home after nine o 'clock. In a hurry, he wrote more than three thousand characters. In the end, when he examined it, he discovered that the last thousand or so characters were completely wrong. The mistakes were shocking, so he could only delete them. I'll post this. Tomorrow, there will be two chapters.)
You've already exceeded your reading limit for today. If you want to read more, please log in.
Login
Select text and click 'Report' to let us know about any bad translation.
