Chapter 454

Darkness had begun to descend at some unknown time, light and shadow intertwining.

The Exquisite Pagoda shattered and vanished.

Everything gradually fell quiet.

Li Muzha was left with only half a ruined body, suspended in midair, incomparably dim, almost completely turned into a mass of hazy mist.

Only a pair of eyes still flickered with light, as if flames were burning within them.

"……Master." Zhu Bajie had returned to his normal human form, carrying the half-dead Ao Yulie on his shoulder.

Ao Yulie raised a hand and waved it, proving he was still fine, just a bit injured, only needing a short rest.

Tang Luo withdrew his gaze from the two and looked at Li Jing not far ahead.

Li Jing floated before him, his condition even worse than Li Muzha's by a few degrees; Li Muzha at least still had one hand, half a torso.

The Li Jing before him now had only a head left, along with a neck and a small portion below the neck.

However he looked a bit more solid than Li Muzha; his semi-transparent body had at least not misted over.

Giving one the feeling that a gust of wind could blow him out.

"Can it only, end like this?" Li Jing looked at Tang Luo's right hand and spoke.

Tang Luo raised his fingers, looking at his own index finger, on which there was a tiny notch.

Then, this notch rapidly extended, a black line spreading from his fingertip across his palm, winding and twisting, forming a long narrow wound.

This slender wound extended from his fingertip all the way to his shoulder.

Fresh blood seeped out bit by bit from the wound, dripping from between his fingers, merging into the void and vanishing without a trace.

This was the final effect caused by Li Jing's all-out strike with his "life".

"You are even stronger than before, Tang Xuanzang." Li Jing stared at Tang Luo's blood falling into the void and said.

"You speak as if you've fought me before." Tang Luo laughed.

Li Jing said: "I've fought Sun Wukong. You are the master, he the disciple, yet your cultivation path was truly guided into the door by him."

"More like got beaten up, right?" Tang Luo said.

"Hah——" Ao Yulie just had to let out a laugh, venting.

"A demon monk indeed." Li Jing said, "Come, continue, I'm not dead yet!"

Still wants to fight.

"Father King." Li Muzha drifted over, blocking Li Jing's path, "Stop. You have no chance of winning."

"Unfilial son!" Seeing Li Muzha, Li Jing was no longer so polite; his opening line was "Unfilial son," full of vigor.

Li Muzha couldn't be bothered to argue further: "Give it up. This rotten world, we who should have died long ago, should all disappear!"

A hand slowly reached toward Li Jing.

"Unfilial son! Just with you, you want to kill your father?" Li Jing snorted disdainfully; the Exquisite Pagoda's phantom reappeared, crashing into Li Muzha.

Li Muzha's figure flickered, directly dispersing, then reassembling again, heedlessly charging at Li Jing.

Li Jing directly merged into the nearly formless pagoda remnant, dodging Li Muzha's mutual destruction, and crashed toward Tang Luo.

That momentum — even if he died, he would tear a piece of flesh from him.

Deep hatred and great enmity?

Tang Luo raised his hand; a faint light screen emerged before him.

The Exquisite Pagoda hit the light screen, unable to advance an inch.

Indestructible Xuanjin (Body).

Just like the Glazed Nirvana Great Hand Seal was derived from two skills — Empty Palm and Dragon-Capturing Hand — and could form a giant midair palm when needed.

When not needed it could also be like in wuxia novels, qi surging forth, taking objects from afar.

A thousand yards are already open; opening a hundred yards is still a very easy matter.

The Indestructible Xuanjin Body derived from Parry is the same; it doesn't need to manifest a phantom shield every time it's used.

Li Jing's spent-force strike was easily blocked by Tang Luo.

"Who do you want to save?" Tang Luo looked at the still-raging Li Jing and said.

A slight tremor; the pagoda emitting ripples of power suddenly paused.

"What, you think we're all stupid, haven't noticed yet?" Tang Luo said.

"Power draining terribly." Zhu Bajie said, "You don't even count as a wisp of remnant soul; even the Buddha couldn't save you back. So, you keep seizing power, life force — who do you want to save?"

"What's it to you?"

Li Jing's voice came from within the pagoda.

His final strike left him unable to even maintain his own appearance.

Once this pagoda disperses, he will truly, completely die.

"Heh!" Zhu Bajie's eyes widened, "How did I never notice you were this shameless before?"

Absorbing and seizing their power and even life force, then coming out with "What's it to you"?

Never expected you, Li Jing, with your thick brows and big eyes, to play this trick too?

"Father! What do you mean!" Li Muzha's voice rang out, not agitated, on the contrary very weak, almost at his last breath.

Tang Luo withdrew the light screen; the Merit Jade Lotus emitted a faint glow, warm light falling on Li Muzha.

Can't save them, but extending their time a bit is still possible.

"Unfilial son, your father's actions, still need to be explained to you, this monster?" The voice of Li Jing in the pagoda was still the same as before.

Full of the air of a lofty patriarch, majestic, overbearing.

Since when does your father need to explain anything to you, this son? When have I ever had to explain the situation to you when doing things?

Basically just that kind of tune.

This is Li Jing — the "father" within the Three Bonds and Five Constants.

In him, do not expect to feel any fatherly love; not even a hint of mountain-like depth will be revealed.

"Is it... Big Brother?" Li Muzha is not stupid; he said in a deep voice, "It's Big Brother, right!"

Li Jing's three sons: Jinzha, Muzha, Nezha.

The first two are both standard filial sons; Nezha, because of special experiences, a trick of fate, has never gotten along with Li Jing.

The famous unfilial son of the "Three Realms", bar none.

Now Li Muzha has also become an unfilial son.

"You told me back then that Big Brother died; actually he didn't, he actually could be saved, right!" Li Muzha finally managed to get worked up.

"Right." Li Jing said.

The facts are as Li Muzha said.

After the great upheaval, Li Jing and his sons together with a hundred thousand heavenly soldiers all suffered severe damage in one blow.

Li Jing and the others were beyond saving.

But Li Jinzha was different; his condition was somewhat better, still retaining a wisp of remnant soul.

Same as the Howling Celestial Hound, there was still a chance.

Thus came this false world; the main reason Li Jing created this illusory world was to save Li Jinzha.

Besides gods and demons walking, it's not like no other people have mistakenly entered this world.

Rather than saying those people integrated into this illusory world, it's more accurate to say they all became nourishment sustaining Li Jinzha's survival.

And attacking Tang Luo and the others was also for this purpose.

The injuries they suffered, the power and vitality lost, were all hope for Li Jinzha to live on.

The more Tang Luo and the others were injured, the greater the hope Li Jinzha could survive.

Anyway Li Jing was going to die regardless, just a matter of a bit earlier; no matter what, he had to seize a bit more.

Life-and-death blood feud?

Of course not; actually it was just for Li Jinzha to survive.

Of course, Li Jing disliking Tang Luo is real; moreover, if not for Tang Luo timely contacting Li Muzha, letting him find the Howling Celestial Hound.

The Howling Celestial Hound most likely would also have been finished off by Li Jing, becoming "fertilizer".

His attitude toward Li Muzha is also real; there is no thought of "I endure humiliation and bear the burden, all sins are borne by me".

Li Jing simply doesn't have this thought.

His thinking is very simple: I am your father, why would I need to explain anything to you? You don't listen, unfilial son! Then filial sons come out from under the rod.

Simple and tyrannical mindset.

In Li Jing's eyes, Li Muzha is forever that little brat; whatever major matter, I, Li Jing, decide with one word — still need to discuss with you, this little brat?

What could be discussed? Can't even be bothered to explain.

Moreover, the conflict between Li Muzha and Li Jing is also real, concretely existing.

This false world operates according to Li Jing's will, the very appearance he wants to see — order, the Three Bonds and Five Constants, father-son ruler-minister.

The world's appearance has nothing to do with whether Li Jinzha lives or can survive.

Over the long years, Li Muzha has indeed come to thoroughly hate this rotten, stifling world, wanting to break the cage.

Actually not just Li Muzha.

Those Awakened ones, are they not also the Awakened among the heavenly soldiers, members wanting freedom?

"Hmph." Hearing Li Jing's affirmative answer, Li Muzha suddenly calmed down, "You're always like this, self-righteous, high and mighty."

"Unfilial son, a son must have the bearing of a son." Li Jing said, "One by one all wanting to learn from that monster Nezha, the rules were broken long ago."

"You'll never understand." Li Muzha also lost the will to argue, turning to Tang Luo, "Holy Monk, please save my Big Brother."

Since Li Jinzha is not like them, with only a single thought remaining, or rather an obsession that won't perish.

Then with a remnant soul body, the Merit Jade Lotus can still save him; at worst it can guarantee a shred of true spirit doesn't die.

Can "reincarnate"; of course, whether he can recover is another matter.

"Fool." Li Jing said coldly, "Who do you think you're begging?"

"What, you think I won't save someone?" Tang Luo said.

"Nothing to do with 'what I think'." Li Jing said, "Saving someone requires paying a tremendous price; I, Li Jing, admit I don't have the face to make you save someone. So, let's leave it at that..."

Suddenly, heaven and earth transformed.

"You—" Li Muzha's voice cut off abruptly.

Everything around froze, solidified in this instant.

The already tottering world began to collapse and perish piece by piece, like an avalanche.

"Master?" Zhu Bajie spoke.

He felt someone had already detached from this illusory world, sent away at the first moment.

Entered spacetime turbulence, who knows where they went.

Chasing would also be an extremely troublesome matter.

Li Jing was quite straightforward about it: I used this method, I also don't want to gamble on whether you'll repay kindness for enmity.

After all, in his eyes, Tang Luo is a demon monk.

So he sent away Li Jinzha's wisp of remnant soul — at least through the battle just now, Li Jinzha's remnant soul stabilized, perhaps there's a sliver of life.

Also had no intention of waking Li Jinzha; father decides son's destiny, perfectly justified.

"Forget it." Tang Luo raised a hand; the injuries on his hand had already completely healed.

He didn't want to destroy Jinzha's wisp of remnant soul to get even, nor would he chase after to save him.

"You — you let yourself be injured on purpose?" Just as he was vanishing, Li Jing suddenly spoke up and asked.

Tang Luo glanced at the pagoda that was fading away, then at this world one last time: "At any rate, you're the Pagoda-Bearing Heavenly King."