# Chapter 387: Sometimes, to Save Someone, You Must First Learn to Kill
By shouting out Su Li's whereabouts, forcing everyone and everything hidden in the darkness into the sunlight, Chen Changsheng had not done this deliberately—he had acted according to his heart, and what he cared about most was following his heart. But before doing this, he had certainly considered the consequences carefully, believing the benefits would outweigh the drawbacks, just as Liang Wangsun had lamented.
This was both a strategy and a calculation. All the principles Su Li had taught him on the journey south—battle tactics and sword techniques—he had put to use. From another perspective, when he shouted those four words toward the spring-bright Xunyang City, it was like thrusting a sword of wisdom into the pitch-black night, finally tearing open a gap and finding some light.
But the moment he saw Liang Wangsun with his own eyes, he suddenly realized there was a problem with his calculations. The problem wasn't that he couldn't win and had to flee, as Liang Wangsun had said, but rather that Liang Wangsun shouldn't have appeared at all. Liang Wangsun, disregarding the Wang Manor's legacy and public opinion, had come in broad daylight to kill Su Li. Why?
"Why?" Chen Changsheng asked Su Li.
Su Li replied, "Because they're all surnamed Liang."
Liang Xiaoxiao, Liang Hongzhuang, Liang Wangsun... the three who most wanted Su Li dead all shared the surname Liang. Were they all of the Liang Wang bloodline? What irreconcilable hatred existed between Su Li and the Liang Wang Manor?
"Once you've been emperor, how can you be content to remain a prince forever?" Su Li said, gazing at the faintly visible black lotus palanquin outside the window. "The successive masters of the Liang Wang Manor have always wanted to return to the capital and reclaim the throne, but they never had the opportunity—until the civil strife in the capital over a decade ago, which finally showed them a possibility."
Chen Changsheng had heard Su Li speak of those events before and asked with confusion, "Wasn't it the Eternal Spring Sect that wanted to start an uprising back then?"
Su Li said, "To scheme for the world, one must plan deeply. The Liang Wang Manor began infiltrating the Eternal Spring Sect centuries ago. The Eternal Spring Sect stirring up conflict between north and south over a decade ago was their fine handiwork."
Chen Changsheng was puzzled. Back then, Su Li had killed all the Eternal Spring Sect elders with a single sword, crushing the Liang Wang Manor's centuries-long schemes. Their hatred was indeed extreme, but why such bone-deep enmity toward Su Li?
Su Li said, "Among those elders was one surnamed Liang, likely Liang Xiaoxiao's ancestor. As for why Liang Wangsun and Liang Hongzhuang hate me so much... it's probably because after I killed those people at the Eternal Spring Sect, I made a stop at Xunyang City and killed all the old bastards in the Liang Wang Manor too."
Chen Changsheng fell silent, thinking that this was practically wiping out someone's entire family. With such a blood feud, no wonder the younger generation of the Liang Wang bloodline hated Su Li so much, and Liang Xiaoxiao had even stooped to colluding with the demons.
From outside the window came the faint sound of Liang Wangsun and Xunyang City's chief priest conversing.
Chen Changsheng listened silently for a moment, then suddenly asked, "Senior... was it really necessary... to kill so many people?"
A mocking expression appeared on Su Li's face. "Ready to start preaching again?"
Chen Changsheng shook his head. "I just think this matter shouldn't have required so much bloodshed."
Su Li didn't answer directly. "Back then, the Eternal Spring Sect and the Liang Wang Manor wanted to use the south to conquer the north. At that time, the capital was in utter chaos, with the court and the state religion still divided and confronting each other. The only problem the southerners couldn't solve—and also the biggest problem—was the existence of Tianhai. They finally found a way to solve it."
"What way?"
"They wanted me to go to the capital and kill Tianhai. Even if I couldn't kill Tianhai, they believed Tianhai would at least be severely wounded."
"Senior, did you go?" Chen Changsheng had barely asked when he knew it was a stupid question.
Of course, Su Li hadn't gone to the capital to kill Saintess Tianhai; otherwise, history wouldn't be what it was now. Sure enough, Su Li looked at him like he was an idiot. "Do I look like I'm sick?"
Chen Changsheng thought those southerners were the truly sick ones, coming up with such an impossible plan. "How did they try to persuade you back then?"
"They captured my wife, imprisoned her in the Eternal Spring Sect's cold pool, and then tried to persuade me with righteous principles."
When Su Li said this, his face showed no extra expression, but even though over a decade had passed, Chen Changsheng could still feel his anger.
"No one likes killing. I don't either."
Su Li said finally, "When blood flows too much, cleaning the sword is troublesome, let alone one's clothes. So I don't like bloodshed either. But sometimes, people must be killed, and blood must flow."
Chen Changsheng understood. This story he had heard before was now completely filled in. Su Li was using this matter to teach him a simple truth, while also not wanting to hear any more of his admonitions.
To exist in this world, to live freely, to protect those you love from harm, you must be strong enough—and make the entire world acknowledge your strength and fear your power. How do you prove this? How do you make the world acknowledge it? You must dare to kill, dare to make the entire world bleed.
That was what Su Li had done. He killed all the Eternal Spring Sect elders, nearly wiped out the Liang Wang Manor, and made rivers of blood flow across the continent. Though he couldn't save his wife's life, in the decade that followed, no one dared threaten him, use him, or threaten his daughter.
Understanding didn't mean acceptance, but Chen Changsheng couldn't say anything more to Su Li. So he would have to speak to others instead. He walked to the window, pushed it open, looked at Liang Wangsun in the black lotus palanquin, and said simply, "I'm going to protect him."
Liang Wangsun's handsome, noble face showed an ambiguous smile. "Many thought you died in the Zhou Garden. Who would have thought you'd die in Xunyang City instead?"
Chen Changsheng's words were simple, and Liang Wangsun's response was equally simple. Since he had come to kill Su Li under countless watching eyes, it meant he no longer cared about anyone's threats—not even the state religion's.
"He didn't kill you back then. He didn't kill Liang Hongzhuang, and he didn't kill Liang Xiaoxiao."
Chen Changsheng said, "He left the Liang Wang Manor a way out. Perhaps the manor could leave him a way to live as well."
"But very few survived back then, and do you really think that was a way out? No. What the manor lost was the hope of countless people over centuries. But I can indeed leave him a way to live." Liang Wangsun said coldly, "Let me cut off his limbs and cripple his meridians, and I'll let him live."
Chen Changsheng was silent for a moment, then said, "That's not fair."
Liang Wangsun said, "Blood for blood, death for death—that's the fairest thing of all."
Chen Changsheng said, "Senior went to the Snow Plain for humanity's sake. He was severely wounded by the demon siege. Otherwise, none of you could have killed him. So he shouldn't die at human hands—at least not this time, at least not like this. No matter how many people he's killed, even if he really isn't a good person."
Hearing these words, the priests and the Liang Wang Manor's death warriors around the inn showed some change in their emotions.
Liang Wangsun looked at him by the window and said calmly, "What you say may have some truth. For a legendary figure to die like this, those who kill him will surely be recorded in history as petty villains. But... I don't care, and this world doesn't care either. Because this is the only chance to kill him, and everyone in this world wants him dead."
Chen Changsheng asked, "Even if it means conspiring with the demons?"
"This is a shameless murder. Even if it means conspiring with demons, or even making a deal with the devil himself, so what?"
The moment Liang Wangsun finished speaking, the buildings around the inn collapsed one after another, and countless cultivators appeared.
Though Xunyang City's gates had been closed, how could they stop those who wanted to kill Su Li?
Suddenly, a flash of fiery red light appeared in the sky. As the temperature rose and fierce wind swept in, a Fire Cloud Qilin landed at the end of the long street. Xue He sat atop it, his armor still stained with the blood from that day. Then, Liang Hongzhuang appeared at the other end of the street, still in her dancing attire. Her enchanting face was covered in dust, and the sword wounds on her body were still clearly visible. It was unclear how she had managed to return in such a state. Seeing Liang Hongzhuang appear, Hua Jiefu frowned slightly. It was this chief priest of Xunyang City who had secretly told Liang Hongzhuang of Su Li's whereabouts.
"You see, even the state religion wants him dead." Liang Wangsun looked at Chen Changsheng and said, "How can you possibly oppose the entire human world?"
Chen Changsheng looked at the figures around the inn and in the streets and alleys. He didn't know who these people were, what reputations they held in the northern lands, or which sects they belonged to. He could only sense their terrifying presence from their auras. These were all people who had come to kill Su Li. Xue He was a great general of the Zhou Dynasty and probably wouldn't act. Liang Hongzhuang should be too weak to fight. But these others would act. Not to mention the famous assassin Liu Qing, who had been hiding in the darkness all along. Aside from Liang Wangsun, he was the most fearsome person in this battle today.
Su Li was severely wounded, sending an invitation to a feast across the entire continent. The guests had arrived, using their swords as chopsticks, preparing to drink wine made of blood and enjoy a grand meal of human flesh. Chen Changsheng didn't know if more guests would arrive at this feast, but he wanted to try overturning the table.
He stood by the window, looking at Liang Wangsun in the black lotus palanquin, his expression unchanged. He slowly circulated his true essence, his spiritual sense falling into the sword sheath, connecting with the Black Dragon's separated soul, awakening the swords that had slept for many days.
Countless swords.
He began to calculate and deduce, began to prepare to burn his true essence, began to prepare for ten thousand swords to fly at once.
The Sword of Wisdom, the Burning Sword—these were the swords Su Li had taught him. Ten Thousand Swords was his own sword.
He wanted to try if he could use his improvement in the sword path to compensate for the consumption of the Ten Thousand Swords' intent, thus recreating the scene before the Zhou Mausoleum and directly killing Liang Wangsun in one strike.
Chen Changsheng was a young genius at the Penetrating Obscurity Upper Realm. Liang Wangsun was a true expert on the Carefree List. In anyone's eyes—even his own—the gap in strength between them was like that between a city wall and the ground.
But he still wanted to try if he could kill his opponent.
Because the current situation dictated that he must kill Liang Wangsun to let Su Li live.
This, perhaps, was the newest principle he had learned from Su Li.
...
...
(Finally past three thousand. This segment's pace will pick up starting tomorrow. The reason I've been writing slowly these past two days is partly because I was running out of steam, and partly because I really needed to slow down to make Chen Changsheng's path more solid. As for the principle of killing, readers can look back at the chapter where Chen Changsheng almost acted like an idiot.)