# 1825
Chapter 1825
Chapter 1818: Which Is More Important?
Half an hour later.
Vast Desert, no-man's land.
On a sand dune several hundred miles from Sword Hermitage, a figure sat cross-legged in the wind, his mud-stained cassock fluttering in the sand and dust.
He hung his head low, eyes closed, as if asleep.
BOOM——!!!
A crimson figure, like a meteor descending from the heavens, struck the ground, scattering the yellow sands into the air.
In the next instant, a blade's edge pierced through the void, a cold killing intent breaking through the dust, slashing straight toward the眉心 of the Fate Monk!
Yet the Fate Monk simply sat in silence, eyes tightly shut, as if unaware of it all.
The blade's tip stopped abruptly before his brow, its sharp edge cutting open his skin, a smear of crimson seeping through and trickling down the bridge of his nose, dripping onto the Vast Desert.
"Do you think that by putting on this act of offering yourself up for slaughter, I'll show mercy?"
Lin Qiye gripped the handle of [Magatsu Blade], speaking coldly.
"Then what should I do?" the Fate Monk said slowly. "Fight back? I can't beat you... If I can't win and can't escape, why should I resist?"
"Is this the reason you came to this desert?"
"Here, no matter how much noise we make, it won't affect the outside world, and no one will see... isn't that right?" The Fate Monk opened his eyes, gazing into Lin Qiye's,
"This chess game isn't finished yet. If the two of us, the chess masters, start fighting each other first, and the enemy sees it, they'll only think us ridiculous and foolish."
A glint of killing intent drifted from Lin Qiye's blade...
"Perhaps we only need one chess master."
"Maybe." The Fate Monk's expression was utterly calm. "Kill me here, take back the [Fruit of Predetermination], and when our thousands of years of karma merge into one, the Law of Causality will surely emerge.
At that point, you will become the most powerful god of causality in the world, only half a step away from breaking through to Supreme... but after that?
What Great Xia truly lacks on this chessboard... is it really a god of causality?"
"Great Xia doesn't lack a god of causality, nor does it need one who treats human lives as grass... Do you know how many innocent people died because of your lie?"
"Two thousand one hundred and sixty-two... including Xia Simeng, two thousand one hundred and sixty-three." The Fate Monk said lightly, "But without that lie, if you had led all your forces to attack Olympus prematurely, even if you could save them all, Zhou Ping hadn't emerged from seclusion yet—then what would you have done when you encountered the Cthulhu Faction gods?"
"I made preparations in advance! Even without my teacher stepping in, we could have escaped!"
"You mean those forbidden curses? Do you think those things could hold back that many Cthulhu Faction gods?" The Fate Monk's voice rose, speaking coldly, "Relying solely on those forbidden curses, even if you could escape the encirclement of the Cthulhu Faction gods! You would lose at least two Human Apexes!
I'm not talking about just two thousand ordinary people, plus one Xia Simeng—even if it were twenty thousand, two hundred thousand! Their combined importance on this chessboard is nowhere near that of two Human Apexes!!"
At those final words, Lin Qiye's eyes contracted sharply. He thrust [Magatsu Blade] into the sand beside him and smashed a fist into the Fate Monk's face!
BOOM——!!!
Blood spurted as the Fate Monk flew backward like a sandbag, landing hundreds of meters away!
Before the Fate Monk's body could hit the ground, a crimson afterimage shot to his front, and a powerful hand grabbed his collar, suspending his entire body in the air.
Lin Qiye glared into the Fate Monk's eyes, shouting:
"I'm asking you... who am I?"
The Fate Monk's mouth was filled with blood; he looked at Lin Qiye, saying nothing.
"I am the Night Watcher!!" Lin Qiye pressed his eyes close to the Fate Monk's face,
"Yes, we must win this chess game!
But if, while fighting to protect humanity's future, we also sacrifice ordinary people's lives as a means to achieve final victory... then what is the point of playing this chess game?
If Ye Fan, Zuo Qing, Zhao Kongcheng... if they saw us using ordinary people's lives to build our victory, what would they think? Those lives were protected one by one with their own lives! If they were here, would they allow you to do this?"
"War always requires sacrifice... isn't that right?" The Fate Monk spoke slowly. "I've already said the same reasoning four years ago. I won't repeat it."
In Lin Qiye's mind, the images of the two young girls walking shoulder to shoulder into the sea of flames four years ago flashed instantly. His already burning fury was reignited!
"Don't you feel even a shred of guilt for the deaths of those two thousand people?" Lin Qiye clenched his teeth, growling.
"No." The Fate Monk answered without hesitation.
CRACK——!!
Another fist slammed out, the force piercing through the Fate Monk's body and cratering the Vast Desert below into a terrifying deep pit.
The Fate Monk spat out a mouthful of blood, his face deathly pale...
Yellow sand raged in the wind. At the center of this terrifying pit, the Fate Monk had become completely drenched in blood.
Lin Qiye looked down at the barely breathing Fate Monk beneath him, his chest heaving剧烈—he was not joking about his current power. These few punches, even against a Human Apex-level Fate Monk, had left him with barely a thread of breath, on the brink of death.
"Cough... cough cough..." Crimson blood soaked the sand. The Fate Monk opened his mouth, coughing out several blood clots.
Lin Qiye's blood-red fists trembled slightly. He stared down at the Fate Monk beneath him. After a long while, he still couldn't land that final punch.
He took a deep breath, rose to his feet, and said in a low voice:
"From now on... stay in your temple. Don't take a single step outside without my orders."
The words fell. Lin Qiye turned and walked away.
A hoarse voice drifted up from the blood-filled pit, "...Go see... Zhou Ping..."
Lin Qiye glanced back at him, a look of reluctance and helplessness flickering in his eyes. He shook his head and walked toward Sword Hermitage.
He pulled out his satellite phone and dialed a number:
"Hello? Junliang?"
"..."
"Yes, I'll send you the location in a bit. Send the medical team... yeah, after you stabilize him, have someone escort him back to the temple on Kunlun Mountain."
"..."
"Send two people to guard the foot of the mountain. Don't let him run around. Understand?"
"..."
After giving his instructions, Lin Qiye hung up. Not long after, a lone hermitage standing in the desert appeared in his vision.