Chapter 18: There Will Always Be Those Who Follow!
At this moment, Zuo Ruotong’s heart felt as though it were being twisted by a knife.
Although, after speaking with Li Ang at the beginning and reflecting on the problems he had encountered throughout his cultivation, he had already faintly guessed the truth: the Third Stage of Reverse Life could not lead one to immortality.
Yet until he had personally broken through to the third stage, he had always forced himself to hold on to that last shred of hope.
But now, that hope had dispersed.
The Great Surplus Immortal slowly descended to the ground. His face instantly aged until he looked like a centenarian.
In a hoarse voice, he said to Li Ang, “Go and summon the disciples...”
Faced with his master’s command, Li Ang remained rooted to the spot.
When he saw that Li Ang did not move, exhaustion surfaced across Zuo Ruotong’s deeply furrowed face.
“What is it? You have only recently joined the sect, and already you no longer wish to heed my words?”
Even after hearing this, Li Ang continued standing motionless. Only after a moment did he speak.
“Master, please circulate your profound art once more. The survival of the Three-in-One Sect rests entirely upon a single thought of yours.”
Zuo Ruotong staggered over to a large tree and sat down against its trunk.
Rather than circulate the Third Stage of Reverse Life as Li Ang had asked, he lowered his head in utter weariness.
“The things you said before entering the sect were right.”
“A falsehood is ultimately still a falsehood. The Third Stage of Reverse Life is still incapable of reaching the heavens.”
“In the end, it was nothing more than a bubble...”
As he spoke, he let out a long sigh.
If it were possible, Zuo Ruotong, the head of the Three-in-One Sect, wished more than anyone for his conclusion to be wrong.
After a brief silence, Li Ang had no intention of debating his master over the Third Stage of Reverse Life. After all, their attainments in that area were on entirely different levels.
In a calm voice, he asked, “Master, if you were to leave this world just like this, do you think Senior Uncle Sichong and Senior Brother Chengzhen would go looking for Rootless?”
“I do not believe either of them could survive at the hands of that leader of the Complete Nature Sect.”
“Or do you think that everything that happened here today will never spread beyond these walls?”
Faced with his disciple’s questions, Zuo Ruotong fell silent.
After that brief exchange, he understood the methods of the Complete Nature Sect’s leader more clearly than anyone else.
To put it bluntly, apart from him, anyone in the entire Three-in-One Sect who encountered that man would meet certain death.
Li Ang knew that what he was doing amounted to moral coercion. With his knowledge of the story and the perspective of one who knew what lay ahead, he was naturally far more aware of the future than his master.
Fortunately, Zuo Ruotong ultimately could not harden his heart enough to regard his disciples as mere sacrificial fodder.
“Senior Uncle Sichong and Senior Brother Chengzhen will certainly seek out Rootless and test the Third Stage.”
“If the two of them die, the Three-in-One Sect will truly become locked in a struggle to the death with the Complete Nature Sect.”
“Without your protection, when that time comes...”
Li Ang did not finish. He merely shook his head and closed his mouth.
He believed his master could understand the words he had left unsaid.
The clearing fell silent.
When Zuo Ruotong still did not speak, Li Ang could not help growing anxious.
Would everything ultimately return to its original course? Could something like the force of correction truly exist?
Just as his thoughts began to run wild, Zuo Ruotong suddenly smiled.
“You have not been in the sect for long, yet you worry about the future of the Three-in-One Sect even more than I do.”
He raised his head and fixed his gaze upon Li Ang. In a solemn tone, he asked, “Do you not resent the Three-in-One Sect for being founded upon a false profound art?”
At these words, Li Ang secretly breathed a sigh of relief. He knew that Zuo Ruotong had begun to waver.
It was not that he had changed his mind about whether the Third Stage of Reverse Life could reach the heavens. Rather, he was wavering over whether he should simply abandon the world and leave the Three-in-One Sect to fend for itself.
As far as Li Ang was concerned, whether the Third Stage of Reverse Life could reach the heavens was unimportant.
For one thing, he had learned it purely for self-preservation. For another...
He possessed a Profession Panel.
With that thought, he immediately circulated the Third Stage of Reverse Life and stepped forward.
“Master, whether it is real or false...”
“The Three-in-One Sect cannot be without you!”
Seeing Li Ang’s entire body turn pale, Zuo Ruotong was stunned into silence.
He could naturally tell that this disciple, who had only recently joined the sect, had made considerable progress in the Third Stage of Reverse Life since their last meeting.
But could anyone in this world truly possess talent terrifying enough to reach such a level?
While Zuo Ruotong stood lost in thought, Li Ang continued, “Master, I will prove it. I will prove that the Third Stage of Reverse Life is more than just a technique!”
How could one make someone who had lost all hope regain the will to rise again?
It was very simple: create a new hope and hold it out before him.
That was precisely what Li Ang was doing now.
Most importantly, he believed that, with his Profession Panel, he truly might be able to accomplish it.
It was also at that moment that Li Ang finally understood why the requirements for changing professions from Qi Alchemist of the Three-in-One Sect to Immortal demanded the completion of a ritual whose central element was “truth and falsehood.”
“There will always be successors!”
“Master, those were your own words!”
Under Li Ang’s persuasion, which intertwined the future of the disciples with the fate of the Third Stage of Reverse Life, Zuo Ruotong finally moved.
He struggled to his feet, walked over to Li Ang, and forcefully patted him on the shoulder.
“If that is so, then go and prove it to me.”
With that motion, Zuo Ruotong’s withered body gradually recovered, returning to the vigorous state it had possessed not long before, his true energy once again abundant.
Seeing this, Li Ang finally relaxed. He knew that he had succeeded.
His words just now had certainly played a part, but the greater reason was probably that Zuo Ruotong had realized what would happen if he died here and now: the disciples currently within the sect would likely meet anything but a good end.
Just as Li Ang thought the matter had come to an end, Zuo Ruotong suddenly spoke beside him.
“Go and tell your Senior Uncle Sichong and Senior Brother Chengzhen to come see me. Tell them I have something to say.”
“...I understand, Master.”
Li Ang had no idea what Zuo Ruotong intended to do. He could only nod and accept the order.
Watching him walk away, Zuo Ruotong let out a long sigh.
“Three-in-One... Three-in-One...”
“If the Third Stage cannot reach the heavens, then there is no need for this name either.”
Within the Three-in-One Sect, Sichong and Chengzhen almost instinctively questioned Li Ang when they saw how battered he was.
“How did you end up looking like this?”
“Did something go wrong during your cultivation?”
But they immediately rejected their own guesses. They had seen the consequences of something going awry during the Third Stage of Reverse Life, and they did not resemble Li Ang’s current condition at all.
The newly initiated disciple’s miserable appearance looked much more like he had...
Fought someone?
Before they could continue questioning him, Li Ang spoke directly.
“Senior Uncle. Senior Brother.”
“Master is waiting for you in the rear mountain. He says there is something important to discuss.”
The two men were stunned for a moment, but quickly recovered and hurried toward the rear mountain.
Having delivered the message, Li Ang turned around and went to find a senior disciple to treat his wounds. Leaving them unattended was clearly not an option.
As he watched the senior disciple bandage him, he could not help thinking to himself:
If only I had already reached the Second Stage...
Li Ang finally had time to experience the Third Stage of Reverse Life now that it had reached the Proficient level. Just as he had expected, Proficient still represented only the first stage.
Compared with the Novice level, however, its defensive power and strength had increased considerably, while its energy consumption had dropped sharply. Even so, it still lacked the ability to repair his body.
With my current strength, if I returned to that previous world, I should at least be able to protect myself, right?
At the thought of those nauseating insects, Li Ang’s gaze began to flicker.