đź“– Chapter 1296 - Thinking of the Round World
Walking between heaven and earth, walking through the four seasons, walking along the path of life.
Wang Baole walked forward step by step. As he walked, his heart became peaceful. As he walked, his soul became tranquil. As he walked, his eyes became profound.
Time passed. Snow turned into rain, and day turned into night. In this endless cycle, Wang Baole continued to walk. He walked through territories, he walked through domains, he crossed mountains and seas until he had long lost track of the number.
Finally, he saw a bridge.
An enormous bridge appeared in front of him, reaching high into the sky with a shocking presence. Its blueish-black bricks were covered in mystical runes, and there were ancient carvings of auspicious beasts all around it, making it seem as if it had been created by the universe itself. Although it was not overly exquisite, the rugged construction lent it a supremely domineering aura!
Standing in front of the bridge, Wang Baole felt his mind rumble. The aura rushing toward him seemed to contain a sense of ancientness, as if it was wind blowing to him from a time long ago. It was as if he had been brought back to the desolate wilderness of ancient times. In the whistling wind, he seemed to hear the lonely sound of a bamboo flute.
Right before his eyes, Wang Baole saw figures appear on the bridge. These figures were all cultivators, and all of them obviously had heaven-shaking cultivation bases. They… came from different eras and different times, but all of them walked this same bridge.
“This is…” After a while, the figures on the bridge faded away. When there was only a solitary bridge in front of him, a soft murmur escaped Wang Baole’s mouth.
“The Heaven Trampling Bridge.” The person who spoke this time wasn’t Wang Baole, but someone who had appeared next to him at some point – Father Wang.
Father Wang wore a white robe and had a head full of white hair. His eyes were calm as he first looked at the Heaven Trampling Bridge, then at Wang Baole, who was greeting him with cupped fists.
“Baole, are you ready to go?”
Wang Baole thought for a while before shaking his head and speaking softly.
“Senior, please wait a little longer. My Dao Heart is still a little short of perfection.”
“Alright. I’ll wait here.” Father Wang looked deeply at Wang Baole, then nodded. Sitting down cross-legged in front of the bridge, he closed both eyes and entered meditation.
Wang Baole bowed again and sat down as well. Lifting his right hand, he looked at the world in his palm and slowly closed his eyes.
His soul returned to his hometown.
As the junior brother, since he received kindness from his senior brother, he had to repay that kindness. This was Wang Baole’s principle.
Similarly, as the son of his parents, filial piety was naturally important. Thus… Wang Baole’s fleshly body remained in front of the Heaven Trampling Bridge, but his soul entered the stele world in his palm, entered the solar system, and landed on… Earth.
His parents were already old.
Although the calamity of the stele world didn’t affect the Federation, the passage of time had still stolen away the blackness of his parents’ hair and left wrinkles on their faces.
Wang Baole’s return made these two elders extremely delighted. As for his sister, she had already married and lived an ordinary life. Although Wang Baole’s existence meant that his family was different from ordinary people, all in all, they were happy.
Seeing his parents happy and his sister happy, Wang Baole also became happy.
Time passed slowly. Inside the stele world, on Earth, Wang Baole seemed to have turned into an ordinary mortal, spending his days at his parents’ side through the final leg of their journey through life.
Every day, his parents had a few more gray hairs, and finally, one day…
Both parents held Wang Baole’s hands. His father was choked up with emotion, and his mother gave him some final reminders. Wang Baole did his best to make sure they were both in comfort, and they slowly… closed their eyes for the last time.
In fact, Wang Baole did have a way to save their lives. He could even let his parents live forever inside his stele world. However, when he brought up the subject, both of them declined. Both of them wished to just spend the rest of their lives quietly, and then… pass away, reincarnate, and enter their next lives.
Everyone had the right to choose their own way. Even if Wang Baole was their son, he couldn’t impose his own wishes on them. If he did that, that wouldn’t be filial piety.
However, his mother did have a request. She asked Wang Baole to make sure that even after entering reincarnation, she and Wang Baole’s father would fall in love and be together in every life.
On their deathbed, Wang Baole’s father almost said something, but after being glared at by his wife, he obediently held his tongue. Then, both of them closed their eyes.
This wasn’t death, but the start of a new journey. Wang Baole knew that he shouldn’t be sad and had to give his blessings with a smile.
However, he couldn’t stop the tears in his eyes as he personally painted the Corpse Faces for his parents, linking them to be together in marriage before sending them into reincarnation.
Just like with his senior brother, Wang Baole waited patiently for his parents’ reincarnations. As he watched their births, his smile became even softer.
As for his sister, Wang Baole left a similar arrangement. No matter what, he would leave the final decision up to her.
After doing all this, Wang Baole’s heart felt more peaceful. Today, he was walking along the streets of Ethereal City. Rain was falling lightly, and few people were out and about.
The world seemed to be covered in a haze.
In this hazy rain, Wang Baole took one step after another. When he came to a crosswalk, he suddenly stopped and turned to look behind him. Standing on a street corner behind him, there was a beautiful figure in a white dress holding a red striped umbrella. She was staring at him.
Their eyes met, and they looked at each other for three breaths of time. A smile appeared on Wang Baole’s face, and he cupped his fists and bowed deeply.
The figure was silent and put away her umbrella, revealing the beautiful face of Li Wan’er. As rain fell on her body, she returned Wang Baole’s bow.
After bowing to each other, both of them turned around and walked away. The distance between the two people grew greater and greater.
Wang Baole left Ethereal City and walked over to the Ethereal Dao College. In the back mountain of the college, there was a path lined with peach trees in full bloom, making for a picturesque scene.
No rain fell in this place, as if it didn’t want to disturb the view. However, a mischievous wind still blew, knocking numerous peach blossoms loose. These fallen petals swirled around a beautiful figure, as if they were unwilling to leave her and her beauty.
Wang Baole walked over and looked at that innocent and beautiful face in the middle of the peach blossoms. Reminiscence appeared in his eyes as he thought back to the days of the past. This figure was… Zhou Xiaoya.
“You’re leaving?” Zhou Xiaoya asked softly.
“Yes.” Wang Baole replied.
“Then… see you later.” After a while, Zhou Xiaoya raised her voice.
See you later, meaning… they would meet again.
“See you later.” Wang Baole smiled and nodded heavily. He didn’t cup his fists. As peach blossoms flew around him, he turned and walked away, leaving the Ethereal Dao College.
Next, he bid farewell to the Flame Patriarch, then to his other old friends. In the end, he came to a mountain in the polar region. Covered in pure white snow, the mountain looked absolutely breathtaking.
Crystal clear snowflakes were still fluttering down.
There was a wooden cabin at the top of the mountain. With the constant snowfall, when looked at from a distance, the wooden cabin seemed to be wearing a white dress.
Inside the wooden cabin was a woman sitting cross-legged in meditation. She had a look of determination on her face, as if she was born to cultivate all her life.
Her name was Zhao Yameng.
When Wang Baole arrived, Zhao Yameng opened her eyes. A smile bloomed like a flower on her beautiful face as she softly spoke.
“Baole, what is a Dao companion?”
“A Dao companion is one who walks along the lonely path of cultivation with you. They can be a teacher, a friend, or a lover, as long as you have them in your heart.” Wang Baole replied with a smile.
“Good.” Zhao Yameng’s lips curled upward. Her smile was elegant and her eyes were calm.
“Good.” Still smiling, Wang Baole sat down next to Zhao Yameng. He closed his eyes.
When he opened them again, he was no longer on Earth, but back on the Immortal Astral Continent. Looking at Father Wang meditating in front of the bridge, Wang Baole spoke softly.
“Senior, thanks for waiting. I… am ready.”