Chapter 37: The Winner
Inside the Great Library of Twilight City's Inner City.
Although it was called the Great Library, the number of ancient texts stored here was not large, not even one ten-millionth of the Soul Great Library. This was not because the Blazing Sun Star lacked heritage; rather, at the end of the First Era, the Devouring Abyss Dragon, Guzi, had breached the numerous protective barriers of the Blazing Sun Star. Hovering above the city, it spewed dragonflame down upon it.
Given the enmity between the Ancient Dragon Faction and the Sun Faction, the goal was naturally to inflict the greatest pain and destruction. Burning down the royal palace in the central district was certainly satisfying, but it wouldn't be long before the Sun God Clan could have their vassal tribes build an even taller and more magnificent palace. However, the royal city's Great Library housed many rare books, ninety-nine percent of which were unique.
The Devouring Abyss Dragon, Guzi, even devoured Abyssal energy. That it could maintain some semblance of sanity was already a miracle. It naturally cared little about the damage burning down the royal city's Great Library would inflict on the civilization of the First Era. Moreover, at the end of the First Era, the conflict between the Sun and Ancient Dragon factions was at its most brutal.
The outcome was that the Devouring Abyss Dragon, Guzi, was slain by the returning Sun King, but the royal city's Great Library was reduced to ashes, and one-fifth of the royal city's buildings were turned to rubble.
Tall bookshelves made of walnut wood stood, bearing the patina of age, giving the wood grain a sense of temporal beauty. When one picked up the ancient texts displayed on the shelves and sniffed them, a faint smell of scorching could still be detected.
Beside the innermost tall bookshelf, a small round wooden table held a candlestick. The darkness of the late night was pushed back somewhat by the dim, yellow candle flame. A stooped, gaunt old man stood before the bookshelf at the edge of the candlelight. His withered hand took down an ancient text; his skin, like tree bark, seemed even more ancient than the book itself.
This frail old man in a gray robe was actually a leader-level figure of the Great Library faction, the Blind Sage. Not only were his eye sockets pitch black, but because the front of his gray robe was open, one could see his withered chest, with his ribs clearly visible. Below that was his hollow abdomen, which looked as if it had been torn open by a wild beast, filled with darkness. It seemed that this very darkness was what allowed such an ancient monster to continue living.
A few meters away, Su Xiao sat on a crystal seat, reading an ancient text on alchemy. After meeting this ancient monster, he discovered that the other party was not a long-lived species, nor even a member of the Sun God Clan, but a human.
The more this was the case, the more it highlighted the ancient monster's power. Looking across the entire Sun faction, this ancient monster was certainly not the strongest, but he was the one who could live the longest.
This also raised a puzzling point. When Su Xiao first arrived at Twilight City, he had always been wary of this ancient monster who had lived from the First Era to the present. However, as events unfolded, he found that this ancient monster was the most desireless of them all, forming a stark contrast with Augustus and Black Bersha, who were vying for power and profit.
This made one wonder: what exactly was the ancient monster's goal? And, enduring the pain of Abyssal corruption, what was he waiting for, surviving all the way to the Third Era?
One must understand that if this ancient monster wanted to become the ruler of Twilight City, not even the current Blazing Sun Lord, Ashlot, let alone his grandfathers, would be a match for him.
Combining all this, the feeling this ancient monster gave was no longer one of scheming for something, but more like he was waiting for something. Under these circumstances, cooperating with this ancient monster was the best choice for the moment. After all, Su Xiao was an outsider. If he didn't cooperate with a local faction, the Twilight City nobles who had long disliked him would swarm him.
Killing all these Twilight City nobles was not difficult, but the problem was that he wouldn't be able to enter Twilight City openly afterward.
"That was a long time ago. A group of us mistakenly entered that dark place, and only the three of us walked out alive. Compared to those two, the traces I left in later generations are insignificant."
The ancient monster, the Blind Sage, spoke.
"..."
Su Xiao looked suspiciously at the ancient monster, who was wiping the cover of an ancient text. He hadn't stated his purpose since arriving.
"Hmm? Weren't you just asking about what happened back then with the three of us? Did I misremember? What did you ask just now?"
"I didn't say anything."
"Impossible. Lying is not a good habit for a young man."
The ancient monster put the wiped book back in its place, then picked up the one he had just wiped and started wiping it again.
Su Xiao had seen many old yinbis with superb acting skills, but he had never heard of anyone who could act to the level of this ancient monster. Moreover, there was no need for the other party to put on such a show in this situation. If that was the case, then this master of the Great Library seemed to have... memory loss due to senile dementia.
"Law Destroyer, what did you say your name was just now?"
"Bai Ye."
"Oh, Bai Ye."
The ancient monster nodded thoughtfully, put back the book he had just wiped, picked up the second one he had wiped before, and carefully wiped it again. Judging from the wear and tear on the nearby books, this ancient monster was specifically tormenting these few, a cyclical pattern of forgetting.
"Don't worry, I still remember the important things. For example, you only arrived at the Blazing Sun Star yesterday."
"..."
"It seems I remembered wrong. You should be more tolerant towards the elderly, especially since I have lived..."
At this point, the ancient monster suddenly paused, as if pondering how many years he had lived. Seeing this, Su Xiao's expression became a bit more serious. Given his current memory, if he really tried to recall how many years he had lived, he might even tire himself into a slumber.
"Two and a half eras."
Hearing Su Xiao's reminder, the ancient monster looked suspicious and asked, "Have I really lived that long? How terrifying. That would make me an immortal old monster. But how did I live so long? It seems like I... ate the darkness?"
The ancient monster squinted his pitch-black, eyeless sockets, then shook his head in disappointment before asking, "That..."
"Bai Ye."
"Oh, Bai Ye. What did you come here for this time?"
"I need the 'Prophet's Enlightenment.' Name your price."
"Hmm, let me think about where this ancient text is placed. It seems to be on my bookshelf? Follow me."
The ancient monster beckoned. For some reason, Su Xiao vaguely felt that this ancient monster should not be so kind and benevolent. For him to have this attitude, there could only be a few reasons.