Chapter 54: The Road Chosen by the Strong
The Road Chosen by the Strong
A gentle breeze swept through the Salvatore Family estate, carrying with it the last lingering traces of Sword Intent that still hung in the air. Though the heavens had long returned to their usual calm, the shock of Victor’s heaven-cleaving strike refused to fade. It remained etched into the hearts of everyone who had witnessed it, leaving behind a silence filled with awe.
Nux stood a short distance away, his crimson eyes fixed on Victor with unconcealed admiration.
"As expected of you, Uncle..." he said quietly, a faint smile tugging at his lips. "Your strength truly has no bottom."
There wasn’t a hint of flattery in his voice.
Every word came from the bottom of his heart.
Out of everyone present, he had stood closest to Victor when that unimaginable sword strike had been unleashed. He had watched the blade tear across the sky with his own eyes, as though the heavens themselves had yielded before its edge.
The memory had carved itself deep into his soul.
Even now, recalling that single moment made his heart race.
No matter how many times he replayed it in his mind, he still couldn’t find the words to describe what he had felt.
It wasn’t simply powerful.
It was overwhelming.
A force so absolute that it shattered everything he thought he understood about the sword.
Yet, strangely enough...
Rather than leaving him discouraged state, the experience only strengthened his resolve, and mind.
His desire to grow burned brighter than ever.
To Nux, Victor was far more than the Patriarch of the Salvatore Family.
He was the pillar that held the family together.
The enlightment light that guided everyone forward.
The sky that sheltered them from every storm.
As long as Victor stood at the family’s forefront, every member of the Salvatore Family believed there was no challenge they couldn’t overcome.
No enemy was too powerful.
No obstacle was truly insurmountable.
Even if Victor accomplished something even more unbelievable tomorrow...
Nux doubted he would be shocked anymore.
Because this was simply who Victor was.
With him, the impossible had long since become ordinary.
Victor merely offered a faint smile at the heartfelt praise.
He neither basked in the compliment nor brushed it aside with false modesty.
Instead, his gaze shifted quietly toward Damien.
The young boy remained completely immersed in his state of enlightenment, oblivious to everything happening around him.
Wisps of invisible Sword Intent flowed gently around his body like a silent current.
His breathing was slow, calm, and perfectly steady.
Each inhale and exhale seemed to harmonize with the very essence of the Sword Principle, as though he had become one with the sword itself.
Watching the scene unfold, Nux let out another quiet sigh, unable to hide the admiration in his eyes.
"Damien’s talent for the Sword Principle is truly extraordinary."
His words were filled only with admiration.
There wasn’t the slightest hint of envy.
Victor silently observed him for a moment before nodding inwardly.
Someone who could sincerely celebrate another person’s talent without allowing jealousy to cloud his heart...
Such character was far rarer than exceptional cultivation talent.
A family filled with gifted cultivators was valuable.
A family filled with gifted cultivators who trusted one another...
That was true strength.
"Everyone has their own fortune," Victor said calmly.
His voice was gentle, yet every word carried undeniable conviction.
Nux nodded without hesitation.
"That’s right."
"It’s all destiny."
Victor looked at him, amusement flickering across his golden eyes.
"Destiny?"
He repeated the word softly before shaking his head.
"Why rely on destiny?"
"And what exactly is destiny?"
Nux stood silently.
He had no answer.
Victor slowly raised one hand.
"Nux."
"In this world..."
"There is only one true destiny."
His gaze became deep and ancient.
"Absolute strength."
The words were simple.
Yet they struck Nux’s heart like a heavy bell.
As Victor finished speaking, an ancient aura slowly gathered at his fingertip.
It carried an indescribable sense of age.
It felt as though countless lifetimes had been compressed into a single strand of light.
Within that tiny fragment existed endless cycles of birth and death.
Reincarnation.
Beginning.
Ending.
Everything seemed to exist within it.
The surrounding air grew strangely quiet.
Even Elder Black, standing silently behind Victor, lifted his gaze ever so slightly.
Victor flicked his finger.
The ancient Samsara Intent drifted gently toward Nux.
"I grant fortune."
"What does that have to do with Heaven?"
The moment those words faded...
The strand of Samsara Intent entered Nux’s forehead.
Instantly—
Everything around him disappeared.
The courtyard vanished.
Victor vanished.
The Salvatore Family vanished.
The entire world dissolved into endless light.
Then...
The four seasons unfolded before his eyes.
Spring arrived with vibrant life.
Summer blazed beneath an endless sun.
Autumn carried lonely winds across blood-soaked battlefields.
Winter buried everything beneath endless snow.
Again.
And again.
The seasons repeated endlessly.
Time lost all meaning.
Then...
Enemies appeared.
One after another.
He fought.
He fought until his body was covered in wounds.
Then new enemies appeared.
He fought again.
Years seemed to pass.
Then decades.
Then centuries.
The battles never ended.
He could no longer remember their faces.
Nor their names.
Eventually...
He even forgot why he had begun fighting in the first place.
Every swing of his weapon became instinct.
Every victory only welcomed another battle.
His body grew heavier.
His soul grew weary.
More than once...
He wanted to stop.
He wanted to lay down his weapon forever.
Yet each time exhaustion threatened to consume him...
A towering figure silently appeared within the deepest part of his heart.
Without speaking a single word...
That familiar figure simply stood there.
Steady.
Unmoving.
Like an eternal mountain.
The instant he saw that figure...
Nux’s dimming fighting spirit ignited once more.
His grip tightened.
His eyes became resolute.
Then...
He raised his weapon once again and stepped forward without hesitation.
Far away, Victor quietly watched the changes taking place within Nux, his expression remaining as calm as ever.
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