Chapter 346: Sending You to the Back

"It had to be you, pulling such a big stunt."

Yu Lin looked up at the sky thick with black clouds and intermittent thunder, then glanced at the wan, trembling yellow figure on the nearby altar whose aura was feeble and about to collapse; a slight shift of his mind made him understand the cause and effect.

He couldn't help but silently praise Zhang Jiao's boldness and madness, for even daring to try to replace the Heavenly Path.

"If this truly makes him…," Yu Lin didn't think further.

His figure flashed, as if teleporting, and the next moment he was already on the altar, standing before the cross‑legged, fallen‑seated Zhang Jiao whose face was like gilt paper.

"Brother Zhang," Yu Lin said, looking at the weak aura but still stubborn eyes of Zhang Jiao, his tone carrying an ineffable sigh, "this undertaking… truly a world‑shaking act, rare through the ages."

Zhang Jiao, seeing his arrival, a faint glimmer flashed in his dim eyes, and he forced a bitter smile: "Yu Lin, you overpraise me… Isn't this… a failure?"

He gasped, with a final hint of hope looking at Yu Lin: "Yu Lin, your powers are vast; I wonder… is there any way you can help me?"

Yu Lin slowly shook his head, his tone calm yet unquestionable: "Sorry."

He looked at Zhang Jiao's face turning ashen in an instant, and added: "The one you intend to replace… is my close friend."

He paused, his gaze seeming to pierce the layers of dark clouds, looking toward the unknowable: "If he did not consider that your original intention was not evil, and that you truly have some desire to save the world, and if you showed mercy, you would by now… have already been scattered in soul and body, unable even to retain this corpse."

"……" Zhang Jiao fell into complete silence, his body trembling slightly, unsure whether from injury or from this harsh truth.

After a long while, he finally exhaled a long breath of blood‑stained vapour, his hoarse voice bitterly laughing: "So that's it… Yu Lin's background is indeed… extraordinary."

He struggled to stand, but his body was already exhausted; the moment he rose, he felt the world spin, his legs staggered, and he was about to collapse again.

Yu Lin reached out and steadied his arm.

"Brother Zhang, where are you going? Let me take you away," Yu Lin said.

Supported by Yu Lin, Zhang Jiao managed to stand, nodding.

The two fell silent, one on each side, and slowly stepped down from the towering altar.

Below the altar, along the road, countless Yellow Turban followers and city residents had already gathered silently.

They stood in silence; no one spoke, no one shouted, even tears were suppressed in their throats.

All eyes followed the two silhouettes, one in plain garments, the other in a tattered yellow robe.

Between heaven and earth, aside from the distant, still‑rumbling thunder, only the rustling of wind through torn banners and people's robes could be heard.

Yu Lin supported Zhang Jiao, walking slowly along the city's main avenue.

Behind them, the silent crowd, like a mute tide, began to move slowly, following their steps.

More and more people gathered, forming a massive yet quiet torrent, passing through broken walls and scorched ruins.

Until they emerged beyond the city, arriving at a cemetery built against the hills.

Here lay countless war‑dead, with simple tombstones haphazardly erected, telling a silent sorrow.

Supported by Yu Lin, Zhang Jiao stepped one by one among the tombstones.

His gaze swept over the cold stones, as if he could see the once‑vivid faces.

He whispered repeatedly, as if consoling the dead, yet also questioning his original ideal: "Eradicate evil, restore righteousness…"

"Accumulate virtue and do good, Heaven will reward it…"

"Rulers, ministers, and the people in harmony, order above and below, no hunger or cold…"

"The world without conflict, all things transform on their own…"

Yu Lin listened quietly, without interjecting, simply supporting him as they walked step by step toward the highest point of the cemetery, a small hill.

When they finally set foot on the hilltop, Zhang Jiao suddenly stopped.

He turned his head, looking at the black, silent mass behind him that had followed, his eyes complex and unreadable.

Then he turned again, looking at Yu Lin beside him, and asked the question that had plagued him all his life, perhaps also countless righteous souls, his voice bearing a final hope and bewilderment:

"Yu Lin… this world… this age of peace, when can it be attained?"

Yu Lin met his gaze, still shaking his head slowly, his words like cold spring water dousing the last spark of his illusion: "Heaven and Earth are balanced; good and evil persist."

"An absolute age of peace, without dispute or disturbance, all things transform on their own… This is an ideal realm; it goes against the natural order of Heaven and Earth, unattainable, and will never be achieved."

He saw the last glimmer in Zhang Jiao's eyes fade completely, yet his tone shifted slightly: "But…"

Zhang Jiao suddenly lifted his head.

"I could, and let Brother Zhang see with his own eyes… the future."

Hearing this, Zhang Jiao showed no hesitation, immediately bowing solemnly to Yu Lin: "Thank you… Yu Lin!"

The moment his words ended, Zhang Jiao felt the surrounding space‑time freeze instantly, then he was pulled and twisted by an irresistible great force!

The scene before his eyes began to change, blur, and then reassemble at a staggering speed!

He seemed to cross a never‑ending river of time.

The surroundings flickered like a revolving lantern: ruined cities vanished in sandstorms, new dynasties rose on the ruins only to collapse, fields and furrows constantly shifted, ancient imperial roads were replaced by wider, smoother highways…

He saw low mud houses gradually replaced by brick‑tile homes, then countless steel frames shooting up, sheathed in glass curtain walls, becoming towering "mountain peaks" he could not comprehend! He saw iron "giant beasts" racing along criss‑crossing "river channels," saw tiny "boxes" flashing with light and shadow figures, and saw people in bizarre costumes hurrying…

These bizarre, otherworldly sights, beyond all his comprehension, shook his mind, leaving him almost unable to think.

When the violent temporal‑spatial shifts finally ceased, Zhang Jiao found himself standing in a completely unfamiliar world.

He stood in the middle of an extraordinarily wide, mirror‑smooth black road, surrounded by countless towering skyscrapers that pierced the clouds, their glass curtain walls reflecting dazzling sunlight.

People of all sorts, dressed in varied attire, hurried past him; no one gave a second glance to this ancient‑clad, gaunt Daoist in a yellow robe.

His ears were filled with a cacophony he could not understand, and the air was thick with unfamiliar scents.

Everything before his eyes left him with unprecedented bewilderment, shock, and an indescribable sense of wonder.

"Is this the future?"

Zhang Jiao strode forward, merging into the crowd.

He wanted to see it with his own eyes.