Chapter 55: Burned to Ashes
The furnace blazed fiercely, and no one spoke anymore. Mr. J stopped his fake smile. He didn’t know the story of Shuguang, Gusi, and Laolunte, but what he saw were three old men willing to face death to fulfill their convictions.
Black powder leaked from beneath the furnace, totaling less than 10 grams. This was the “iron” within the Ancient Gods—or rather, the transcendent substance formed after their bodies, energy, and souls were incinerated.
“Laolunte, it’s your turn.”
Gusi opened the front air vent of the furnace. Laolunte, lying on the ground, had just risen when Gusi placed a hand on his shoulder and said, “Leave me one arm, that’s enough.”
“Understood.”
As soon as Laolunte spoke, a large mouth full of sharp teeth split open on his tentacle. With a few bites, it severed Gusi’s legs and left arm. From start to finish, Gusi didn’t utter a sound.
Gusi had said he would never lie in the furnace again, and that was true. He didn’t personally enter it. Instead, he let Laolunte swallow and absorb his two legs and one arm, then enter the furnace.
“This time, I owe you nothing.”
Gusi crawled to the furnace on his remaining arm and slammed it shut with a bang. He laughed a bit maniacally, but more than that, there was relief and ease.
The flames inside the furnace roared. Laolunte made no sound, enduring the burning calmly.
“Puppet, come here.”
Gusi leaned against the furnace. Upon hearing this, the Sad Maiden, who had been quietly standing by the door, stepped forward.
The Sad Maiden, who had never left the Sleep House, had voluntarily come to the Old God Church. Based on Su Xiao’s guess, this was arranged by Laolunte.
“Go, fetch the pure silver from the inner chamber.”
“Understood, Lord Gusi.”
The Sad Maiden’s voice was as gentle as ever. She had clearly been to the Old God Church before, easily opening the secret door inside the church and retrieving a metal bottle.
Throughout, Su Xiao didn’t speak, merely observing. This was the final wish of Gusi, Shuguang, and Laolunte. As an outsider, it wasn’t his place to interfere.
“White Night, you can fight with a sword too, right? When Aqide forged the Remnant Moonlight, he mixed in a trace of holy silver. It’s better suited for quenching and plating with high-purity holy silver.”
“Hand it over.”
As soon as Su Xiao raised his hand, the Sad Maiden placed the Remnant Moonlight into his grasp, though she seemed reluctant. Her hand lingered for 0.5 seconds before letting go.
The long sword was drawn. The Remnant Moonlight was about 1.2 meters in total length, with a thin, sharp edge. The blade was roughly three fingers wide, tapering toward the tip.
Clang, clang, clang!
A few slash marks appeared. The Remnant Moonlight leaned toward speed and cutting.
“It’s usable. Fine for clearing a path, but against a strong enemy, it’ll leave openings.”
Su Xiao tossed the Remnant Moonlight, and Gusi caught it.
“Good.”
Gusi thrust the Remnant Moonlight into the ground and began directing the Sad Maiden to prepare the holy silver.
The Sad Maiden didn’t start immediately. Instead, she approached Su Xiao, knelt on one knee, and for the last time, cleansed the darkness from his body.
Soon, she returned to the furnace. She removed the holy silver headpiece from her hair and gently placed it in the stone trough beneath the furnace. Flames surged, and the headpiece melted.
“White Night~ White Night~”
Xia’s voice came from behind Su Xiao, very low.
“Hmm?”
“What are these people doing? It looks so tragic.”
Xia’s voice dropped even lower.
“Use your imagination.”
“How am I supposed to imagine that~”
Xia’s voice rose slightly. Gusi, with only one arm, glanced over.
“Just three incredibly foolish people trying to defy the entire world. Nothing special. What you’re seeing now are three defeated dogs, nothing more.”
Gusi leaned against the furnace. He hadn’t felt this relaxed in a long time. Shuguang and Laolunte, burned to ashes, had already found their release. Perhaps their deeds wouldn’t spread, but they had done what they wanted. That was all.
The Remnant Moonlight slowly returned to its sheath. Gusi stared at the sword in his hand. The last time he saw it was before Niya set out.
“Let it drink blood to its heart’s content. When you wield it, you won’t be corroded by darkness.”
The sheathed Remnant Moonlight was tossed. With a slap, Su Xiao caught it.
[You have obtained the Remnant Moonlight (This weapon is undergoing Moon Soul Incineration. This effect will last for 17 hours. When the Moon Soul extinguishes, this weapon will be permanently destroyed).]
Su Xiao stood up from the steps and handed a heart to the Sad Maiden as payment.
He walked toward the exit of the Old God Church. Bubu Wang, Amu, and Baha immediately followed, with Xia at the rear.
Kaisa, his shifty eyes scanning the surroundings, also quickly followed.
The Sad Maiden and Gusi stood by the furnace. The flames showed signs of dying out again, perhaps never to reignite.
With a rumble, Mr. J closed the stone door of the Old God Church from the outside. Inside, it grew quiet. Moments later.
“Puppet, you’re free. I should leave too.”
Gusi pulled the battle axe from the furnace. From start to finish, he had only assisted Laolunte and Shuguang. Now, Laolunte and Shuguang were eternally at rest here.
“Shuguang’s teaching of Niya was interesting. Yes, that was good.”
With one arm and a battle axe, Gusi easily opened the stone door and left. The door then shut tightly.
That was Gusi. Once he set his mind on something, no matter how difficult, he would see it through. He was the most resilient, the most faithful to his promises, and the most far-sighted.
Was Gusi afraid of death? Did he dare not lie in the furnace? Of course not. He had to nurture new hope. That way, even if Su Xiao and the others failed, the people of this world wouldn’t be utterly despairing.
For these three, death was actually a release. Continuing to live and letting new “seeds” sprout was the harder choice. Gusi chose this path because, first, he was an Immortal Wizard with his own pride, and second, he had two old friends: Shuguang and Laolunte.
That was why Shuguang’s last words were: “So the bravest one was you, Gusi.”
Inside the Old God Church, over ten minutes later, the furnace flames died out. The Sad Maiden pressed a mechanism on the furnace, and it sank into the ground, leaving only Niya’s statue above.
The Sad Maiden approached the statue, holding a heart to her chest. She rested her head against the statue, a faint smile on her face.
“Lord Niya, please allow this puppet to accompany you.”
The light in the Sad Maiden’s eyes faded, and her eyelids slowly closed. A satisfaction she had never felt before welled up in her heart. The puppet had always had a “heart”; it never needed a crystal one.
...
“That’s how it is. Clear now?”
Baha crouched on Amu’s shoulder. It had just told Xia about Niya, Shuguang, Gusi, Laolunte, and the Sad Maiden.
“So heavy. The most pitiful one is Niya.”
“Nothing heavy about it. Everyone has things they want to accomplish. They all moved straight ahead, never wavering.”
Baha suddenly turned into a life coach, but given its personality, it was probably feeding her toxic chicken soup.
“Yeah! That makes so much sense.”
Xia was clearly already fooled by Baha.
“That line sounds familiar.”
Mr. J rubbed his chin thoughtfully.
“It’s a movie quote.”
Su Xiao spoke as he tucked the Remnant Moonlight into his belt.
“No wonder it sounded familiar. That movie was... I forget the specifics, but it was definitely a bad film.”
“Huh?”
Xia was stunned. Her heavy mood instantly dissipated.
“Yeah, that makes so much sense,” Baha mimicked Xia’s earlier tone, then let out a shameless laugh.
“That’s too much.”
Xia smiled wryly, then thought of the great enemy in Aisenla. She had learned from Baha that the guy was an old schemer.
Thinking about it gave Xia a headache. In reality, she had nothing to worry about. Before, Su Xiao alone had pushed Sfenke to the brink. Now, with Mr. J, a master of strategy, joining them, things were different.
Miao Shu Wu