It was indeed him, Bai Yanshu!
When Moluo Jia’s pupils constricted and his heart trembled violently upon clearly seeing the man sitting cross-legged before the golden bridge of light, he realized it was Bai Yanshu.
Though he had long suspected it, seeing Bai Yanshu completely unharmed in this mysterious and bizarre place still greatly surprised him. He hadn't expected this man to truly be alive.
From a distance, Bai Yanshu seemed to sense him and slowly opened his eyes.
His hair was tied with a jade coronet, slightly loose, with a few strands falling by his temples. His peaceful face appeared refined and transcendent, exuding an aura of detached purity. Though his green robe was somewhat tattered and even stained with blood, it did not diminish his demeanor; compassion and殺戮 (shālù - slaughter/killing) were combined within him.
“Moluo Jia, you have indeed come…” Bai Yanshu said slowly.
“Bai Yanshu, you also did not die.”
Moluo Jia gazed at this mortal enemy before him, doing his best to calm his emotions.
“You are much stronger than four years ago. Have you comprehended the method to become a god?” he said, glancing at the bridge of light behind Bai Yanshu, remarking calmly, “What is this bridge of light, and why are you guarding here?”
This was the answer he most wanted to know.
Bai Yanshu had been here for four years, he was certainly aware of it. What had he experienced during these years? Why could he survive amidst so many ferocious divine beasts? What caused the bloodstains on him?
And the devastated ground, so many terrifying fissures… all made Moluo Jia eager to uncover the truth.
Bai Yanshu did not answer him, his expression indifferent, like a banished immortal detached from worldly affairs.
Moluo Jia waited for a moment, growing impatient. He raised his voice and questioned, “Why don’t you speak? Are you afraid this Demon Lord will know this is the Path to Heaven?”
Just then, Shui Hanyi, staggering and stumbling, finally rushed over.
He was emaciated, his skin clinging to bone, with a mess of white hair, looking like a living corpse, completely devoid of the bearing of a sect master.
Only his eyes still burned with a fierce fire, filled with intense desire. He crawled closer and closer.
“Path to Heaven! I have finally arrived…”
Shui Hanyi could no longer support himself, yet he continued to crawl forward, his face filled with fanaticism and greed like a hungry ghost.
He also saw Bai Yanshu. After a brief pant, he stared at him and said hoarsely, “Bai Yanshu, do you… do you not know that following this Path to Heaven… leads to the Divine Realm? Becoming a god! Why… why are you just sitting here… Move aside, this venerable one needs to pass…”
He extended his withered hand, struggling to crawl forward inch by inch.
Like a miserable dog fallen into water, he clutched the last straw of hope and desperately crawled towards the bridge of light.
Bai Yanshu remained seated cross-legged. After looking at him a few times, he recognized him and said with pity, “So it’s you, Shui Hanyi. You have become like this, thoroughly eroded and aged by divine essence, yet you do not awaken. If you advance further, you will only die faster. It is best to return.”
Looking at the bridge of light shining down from above, Shui Hanyi could not heed any advice.
He crawled forward, his body scraping against the hard rock, leaving trails of wounds, as if he felt no pain. The expression on his face grew more fervent, his eyes gleamed, and he muttered, “Path to Heaven… Excellent, as long as I step onto this Path to Heaven, I can become a god! Hahaha cough cough cough…”
Overcome with emotion, Shui Hanyi coughed violently.
Above, a Vermilion Bird covered in fiery red discovered the commotion. It cried out and swooped down.
Moluo Jia’s eyes sharpened, and his figure flickered, vanishing from his original spot.
Instantly, the Vermilion Bird spread its wings, carrying a terrifying pressure as it charged towards Shui Hanyi, its sharp claws slashing down.
“Vermilion Bird! Don’t…”
Shui Hanyi’s face changed drastically. He instinctively struck out with a palm, but it had no power. He himself coughed violently and fell to the ground in a sorry state.
With a flash of red light, the Vermilion Bird swooped past. Shui Hanyi screamed, “Ah–!”
A deep wound was torn open on his back, his flesh and skin split, his bones broken. If it hadn't been a probing strike from the Vermilion Bird, he would have been torn in half.
“No, I don’t want to die… Path to Heaven!”
Shui Hanyi’s face contorted in pain, yet he stared fixedly at the bridge of light behind Bai Yanshu and crawled forward desperately.
This was his last hope, his everything!
“I want to become a god…”
“I will not die! Bai Yanshu, Moluo Jia, and everyone else… I, I will let you see cough cough cough… me, me becoming a god. This is… this is my destiny…”
Shui Hanyi had fallen into madness. He mumbled to himself while crawling towards the bridge of light, completely disregarding the Vermilion Bird that was attacking him again.
A fierce wind struck, and with a slash of its claws, Shui Hanyi rolled on the ground with all his might, trying to dodge.
The claw wind severed his left arm, and blood sprayed out, causing him to groan in pain.
But Shui Hanyi paid no mind to his severed arm, accelerating his arduous crawl forward, leaving pools of blood behind him, trailing a long bloodline like a moving corpse.
When Li Tianjue and Su Luo’s group arrived, they witnessed such a scene.
The giant Vermilion Bird swooped down, grabbed the now armless Shui Hanyi, and flew up. Everyone watched, their breathing becoming heavy.
Held by the bird’s talons, he could barely move, yet he still cried out in pain, “Let me go, you damn bird! I want to go to the Path to Heaven… I want to become a god, release me quickly! I will kill you, you damn bird, ah–!”
The Vermilion Bird tightened its grip on its talons, directly cutting Shui Hanyi into several pieces, which scattered downwards.
The falling blood mixed with the broken body, casting a heavy mood upon everyone.
Even though Shui Hanyi was their enemy and a mortal foe, witnessing him die under the talons of the Vermilion Bird for the path to godhood, without any ability to resist, so tragically, still silenced everyone.
Was this the price of becoming a god?
They were almost driven to madness.
“Master!”
Suddenly, Li Tianjue’s eyes lit up as he saw the middle-aged man sitting cross-legged before the bridge of light. He blurted out.
This shout brought the others back to their senses.
Everyone from Qingxutian focused on Bai Yanshu. Chu Tianshu and Lu Jixing’s faces beamed with surprise and joy. Tang Xiaoguo and Zhan Li were stunned, staring at him blankly, unable to speak.
Bai Qi stood frozen, looking at the man in the green robe covered in blood without blinking. He was so excited that he was stunned into stillness, his mind a blank.
He had only one thought: Father, it’s Father, he had finally found him!
Just as Li Tianjue was about to rush towards Bai Yanshu, Su Luo, instead of following, grabbed him, “Wait, Senior Brother…”
At the same time, Bai Yanshu also spoke to stop him, “Don’t come over, Tianjue!”
Li Tianjue froze on the spot, unsure of what was happening. He looked at Bai Yanshu, then at Su Luo. Following her subtle glance, he realized that his Master was not simply sitting there.
Beneath him seemed to be a formation, inscribed with countless runes.
Suddenly, a figure flashed, and Moluo Jia’s gloomy voice rang out, filled with intense killing intent, “You all have arrived? People from Qingxutian, as well as the Longevity Palace, Penglai Island, and the Six Desires Sect… Heh heh! As expected, you are persistent. Today is my Demon Lord’s day to become a god. I will bury all of you here.”