The Regressor of Mount Hua-Chapter 351. The Fall of the Headquarters (1)

The Juvenile Fist Emperor, Jing Bai. For him, who was called the Most Righteous of the Righteous Path, the Righteous Path had always been a part of his life, and it was his everything.

Do no wrong; do what was right.

It was a simple and clear tenet that everyone knew, but only a few could stick to it.

People would eventually have to face the harsh reality at some point. They would have to give up their righteous ideals to compromise with the harsh reality.

However, Jing Bai hadn't done the so-called "compromise."

Whenever something was wrong, he would point it out and try to fix it.

He valued the righteous path and strived to do good deeds.

It was a noble and upright belief, but in the eyes of ordinary people, it was only natural for them to call it crazy.

If one were to ask why, there would only be one answer. Jing Bai's actions weren't something a human being could do.

To disregard one's life in the pursuit of helping others was something that could only happen once or twice in one's lifetime. Repeating it for decades was just crazy.

"Why must you go so far?" Nangong Weiwu asked him once.

"Because this is the Dao of Man," Jing Bai replied. His thoughts weren't that complicated. It was simple enough for even a child to understand. However, it was a concept that was so far removed from reality that people mocked it as an ideal.

Originally, it was difficult to maintain the idea of ​​an ideal.

The goal was high, and there was a limit.

In Jing Bai's eyes, however, that wall wasn't that high.

He was talented enough to reach the apex of cultivation without an ascendant technique, without the backing of a prestigious family or set, or even a master.

If Jing Bai were in a situation where he could only save one out of two people, he would always save both using his overwhelming talent and effort.

There were times when he faced a truly helpless situation, and there were times when he felt frustrated, but he never gave up. He never stopped trying. Even when he got older and became frustrated, he still practiced his convictions.

Perhaps it was because of his endless efforts or his pure character, but eventually, many heroes of the murim gathered around him. When he came to his senses, the people were already calling him "hero."

Eventually, his unchanging belief manifested in the form of a Path, marking his path to the Absolute Master Realm, but the ideals that hadn't changed for decades were now being shaken.

It all began when Nangong Weiwu became the mortal enemy of the murim.

"Take responsibility for that so-called Righteous Path of yours!"

"I'm saying, grow up!"

Zhou Xuchuan's words were stuck in a corner of his head.

Those words hadn't left his head—no, his heart.

Take responsibility... He chewed on those words as he remained in the murim. To see the results of his actions based on his beliefs.

The incident with Nangong Weiwu caused ripples that spread like tidal waves.

And today, Jing Bai finally noticed.

Have I... changed...

To compromise was to understand and establish a mutual respect.

Jing Bai finally put down his ideals. In the name of responsibility, he compromised like ordinary people. In return, he discovered that his cultivation, including his physical state, was regressing due to his problematic mental state.

At this rate, I won't be able to take responsibility for my actions.

His realm had regressed to the beginning stage of the Coruscant Realm before eventually falling below that. Now, he was between the Harmony Realm and the Coruscant Realm.

It was only natural. His Path had collapsed, after all.

No, there is one other way.

Another application of the Manifestation of One's Path.

Innate True Qi.

Innate True Qi was sourced within people—no, living beings, and it was an ideal power. Every human being was born with it, and unlike internal qi, it couldn't be replenished once consumed.

Since using it was tantamount to consuming the source of one's life, the price to use it was great.

The price to pay was just that—one's life.

It didn't matter if the user was a low-level warrior or a high-level master. At worst, one would die, and if one was lucky enough to survive, one would lose all cultivation and become a cripple.

In return, the user would obtain tremendous power.

This was the only way for Jing Bai to make up for his weakened strength.

However, he couldn't care less about the price to pay, as he didn't have much time left anyway.

"Ha!" Jing Bai let out a resonant shout. The qi he had gathered wasn't from nature—no, it was the innate true qi that formed the human named Jing Bai.

The blocked fist pushed the Dark Heavens Association Lord away.

"To think you can handle innate true qi," the Dark Heavens Association Lord muttered in surprise.

Innate true qi wasn't something that could be handled carelessly.

If one used it even a little, one's lifespan would decrease. In other words, one couldn't use it instinctively. The same was applicable for the Coruscant Realm Absolute Masters of the Six Empyrean Overlords.

This was beyond the level of their transcendent willpower.

Even after all that, Jing Bai was still surprised.

I was going to blow him away, but I could only push him back.

Jing Bai's face stiffened. He was running out of time, so a mere exchange of blows was meaningless. He planned to push through and finish things in one breath.

However, the profound strength of the Dark Heavens Association Lord was truly surprising. To think that he would only stagger backward instead of getting blasted away by Jing Bai's attack.

So that's why the Sword God has been warning us so vehemently... is this the power of the Dark Heavens Association Lord?

Zhou Xuchuan had warned several times about the terror of the Dark Heavens Association.

Recalling Zhou Xuchuan's voice, Jing Bai rushed forward for the next attack.

He stepped forward with his right foot.

BOOM!

The ground sank into a half sphere beneath his foot. While such an event made it easy for one to lose their balance, the two masters remained unfazed.

BANG!

Jing Bai twisted his waist and imbued his left fist with a rotational force. The air distorted, but the distortion affected not the wind but the atmosphere itself.

Jing Bai swung his fist with his free hand instead of the one that had pushed the sword away.

Boom!

His fist drew a straight line and struck the Dark Heavens Association Lord's lower abdomen. It was a clean blow.

However, it couldn't inflict a fatal wound. The Dark Heavens Association Lord blocked it by unleashing his defensive qi barrier right before it could hit him.

Woosh!!

Jing Bai spun around half a turn with his right foot as the axis. He raised his left leg to match that and delivered a spinning kick. The speed and power were impeccable. It was enough to make up for his weakened cultivation base, and it even aimed to surpass his original strength.

The Dark Heavens Association Lord blocked the spinning kick aimed at his ribs by holding his sword diagonally. He did it with one fell swoop, without batting even an eyelid.

BANG!

Power clashed with power; qi and qi collided.

As soon as their attacks collided, a massive explosion occurred.

The explosion lived up to that saying.

The qi swirling in the atmosphere distorted and rippled outward, generating a chain reaction of tempestuous explosions.

Crack!!

The roof tiles on the eight gates fell and shattered.

The sand on the ground scattered like fog and rode the wind that swept across the battlefield.

In an instant, all the air disappeared, leaving everyone breathless.

This was the aftereffect of a showdown between two Absolute Masters.

The onlookers couldn't believe that they were staring at a fight between two human beings.

Zhuge Zhonghao was truly amazing for being able to maintain the Eight War Formation Seals amidst such a destructive battle.

Thud!

Jing Bai's figure blurred, and he appeared behind the Dark Heavens Association Lord. He had just displayed the highest form of every lightness technique, Illusive Shift.

"Heup!" Jing Bai drew strength from his body—no, from his very existence, and swung his fist with all his might. His goal was to crush his target's back in one go.

Thud!

However, his punch never landed.

The Dark Heavens Association Lord dodged it as if he had been expecting it, even though he had no eyes behind him.

Funnily enough, he deployed Illusive Shift to dodge the oncoming attack.

The Dark Heavens Association Lord disappeared and reappeared next to Jing Bai.

Shing!

The Dark Heavens Association Lord thrust his sword forward, drawing a single line that moved at impossible speeds.

Jing Bai quickly twisted in midair.

"Aaaargh!"

He moved incredibly fast, but his movements were accompanied by pain. His muscles twisted together, and his veins were pulled taut, making them feel as if they were going to shatter. His organs also felt like they were burning.

His forceful dodge seemed like it would send him hurtling forward, but it actually made him move sideways. His outstretched hand swung sideways as well, and the back of his hand struck the blade of the Dark Heavens Association Lord's sword.

Clang!

A ringing noise echoed from the sword. The skin on the back of Jing Bai's hand trembled, rippling like water.

However, the attacks weren't over yet.

Before Jing Bai could catch his breath, the Dark Heavens Association Lord made his move.

Swoosh!

The sword that was smacked away by the back of Jing Bai's hand had already returned to its original position. Then, it moved desperately according to the movements of its master.

A dark light flashed. The sword was swung at speeds impossible to capture with mere human eyes.

Jing Bai swung his fists in rapid succession to match that speed.

Bang, bang, bang!

The two sent barrage after barrage of attacks at each other.

Clang, clang, clang, clang!

A metallic screech reverberated, sounding as if metal was colliding against metal.

Sparks flew everywhere along with flashes of dark light. Hundreds of blows were exchanged in a split second.

"Haaa... haaa..."Jing Bai's breathing was getting heavier. His heart was pounding as if it were going to burst. He was slowly becoming heavier.

Bang!

Jing Bai took a moment to catch his breath.

"How foolish."

The Dark Heavens Association Lord noticed Jing Bai's condition.

"No matter how great your innate true qi is, in the end, it's still no different from a moth throwing itself into flames. Is it not the same thing as the last flicker of light at the end of a candle? It would have been better if you had just kept living up to your great ideals as you have done so far."

The Dark Heavens Association Lord wasn't wrong. In fact, it was the best answer.

If there had been no change to his ideology until the very end, his mental image would have remained the same. He would have been able to exert his original strength.

Yes, it was still true that he didn't have much time left to live, but he would have survived for quite a while.

"What really caused you to fall to ruin?" asked the Dark Heavens Association Lord. "Although you are crazy and misguided, your beliefs were pure and worthy of respect."

He wasn't being sarcastic. He was being sincere.

"You didn't just talk nonsense like the other hypocrites. Instead, you set an example and made an effort to live a life like it. Why did you put away those noble beliefs and end up becoming a weakling?"

The Dark Heavens Association Lord looked disappointed as he raised his sword.

Thrum!

The air trembled; the heavens and the earth shook.

A wave of vibration engulfed the surroundings and Jing Bai. This was the first time he had ever felt something like this. The unprecedented power contained in the sword twisted and engulfed the surroundings.

"Answer me, Juvenile Fist Emperor."

"I'm not the Juvenile Fist Emperor."

Jing Bai raised his right fist. At this moment, his innate true qi boiled over, spewing out the remaining lifespan and even his foundation. "I am just an old man."

The energy of the great nature was silent. It proved that his "ideals" had collapsed.

Thus, he finally mobilized his dantian, which he had never used. His hair turned white and billowed out around him; the skin under his eyes wrinkled rapidly. His well-trained muscles shrank slowly.

The boy became a young man, and the young man became a middle-aged man.

Finally, the middle-aged man became an old man.

"Enough." The Dark Heavens Association Lord's voice grew cold. No emotion could be found in those eyes that showed nothing but darkness. "Goodbye, Empyrean Overlord of the murim."

The Dark Heavens Association Lord swung his sword.

It didn't matter that he was far from Jing Bai. The sword aimed for the martial artist's head drew a vertical line.

At the same time, Jing Bai swung his fist.

A pure-white light like snow flashed as his innate true qi burst out of him.

If...

Amidst the pure-white light, memories flashed in Jing Bai's mind.

Since he was young, Jing Bai had been wandering through many battlefields. He had always known about the Righteous and Evil Paths, and he had been living his life judging what was right and what was wrong, punishing evildoers.

Eventually, the number of people around him increased. He would laugh; he would cry, and he would often get angry. Sometimes, he raised his voice to discuss the present and the future of the murim.

He had been living a life for the sake of the people.

If... if I hadn't left the murim back then... He had always received the idiot treatment. He was ridiculed as an ignorant child unaware of the harsh reality. It was a belief that no one understood, and it was a lonely path, but at some point, the number of people around him had increased.

Nangong Weiwu, Master Hui Mian, Zhuge Zhonghao, Yun Guang... and many others. Without giving up, he pushed through, and he succeeded in ending the conflict with the previous generation. He also managed to reform the Martial Alliance.

If he hadn't left that day, a different future would have awaited him.

He wouldn't have been sitting in a desolate mountain...

He would have been sitting in the Martial Alliance Leader's hideout, playing Baduk while discussing the future of the murim. He would have even taken on some disciples. He would have often gathered with his fellow elders, cheering for victory with them while waiting for the end of his life.

"Ahhh..." Jing Bai muttered amidst his fading consciousness. "Weiwu... I'm sorry..."

Empyrean Overlord Jing Bai was dead...