Out of fear of death, Invest Everything into Health

Chapter 773: Chapter 302: Escape from Hell, Fall from Heaven (Part 2)

"Upon seeing this tree, I can’t help but recall the days of practicing under the Dao Ancestor."

Fan Wubing curiously asked,

"Master, did you practice with the Dao Ancestor?"

Yushan Daoist laughed and said, "At that time, though a hundred schools of thought contended, and ideas blossomed freely, there was a common understanding that all avenues of truth, though different, eventually converged. It was quite common for Daoist disciples to listen to Confucian lectures and for Confucian students to study under the Dao Ancestor. Communication, exchange, cooperation, and mutual advancement—this is how ideas spark through collision."

Fan Wubing was quite impressed,

"So, that’s why that era is called the best of times!"

Yushan Daoist said, "I don’t quite agree. I always believe that the best of times will never arrive. It is by striving towards a better era that people push forward. If the best of times were in the past, what would people be progressing towards in the future?"

"Hope."

"But doesn’t an era filled with hope qualify as the best of times?"

"I have learned much, Master."

Fan Wubing thought that the Jade Ancestor indeed lived up to the title of ’Ancestor.’ Even casual conversations could lead to great insights.

The two sages continued their discussion with great enthusiasm, while An An stood beside them, her head full of question marks.

Unable to get a word in, after a while, she puffed her cheeks and tugged at Fan Wubing’s sleeve.

"What’s wrong?" Fan Wubing asked.

An An whispered, "Can I really be a senior sister?"

Fan Wubing paused for a moment, quickly understood, and then chuckled,

"You suddenly act so shy. Sorry that Master and I ignored you. Hmm... I think a senior sister doesn’t necessarily have to be stronger than the junior brother."

"But if I’m not stronger, how can I protect my junior brother?"

Fan Wubing said, "Why can’t the junior brother protect the senior sister instead?"

An An pondered for a moment, "That seems right." Her eyes brightened, "If I love you like a sister loves her younger brother, then I can be a qualified senior sister!"

Fan Wubing felt a bit helpless. He couldn’t quite understand An An’s train of thought—she always had all kinds of whimsical thoughts, but when expressed, they often took a different and colorful turn,

"Hmm... alright then. Since you’re my senior sister, you’re the second senior sister of Enlightenment Peak. Would you like to chat with the other junior brothers and sisters?"

"Can I?" An An still seemed a bit shy.

"Of course you can."

"Alright then, I’ll... I’ll give it a try."

After Xiaoye left, An An had no one to rely on but herself. This meant she finally had to embark on the journey of growing up, never looking back.

Watching her back, Fan Wubing couldn’t help but smile.

Just like when he first met An An and thought of her as a neighbor’s little sister. And now, the girl next door has grown up.

Yushan Daoist said,

"Meeting you is An An’s fortune."

Fan Wubing asked, "But what exactly is An An’s situation? Where does the murderous aura around her come from?"

Yushan Daoist said, "Wubing, have you ever heard of Hell?"

"Of cour—" Before he could finish saying "course," Fan Wubing suddenly froze. Being someone who had lived two lives, he had an almost instinctive understanding of the word "Hell." But when he thought about it with the knowledge of this world, he was horrified to find... that despite being in this world for so long, he had never seen the words "Hell," whether from others’ mouths or in books and articles...

He very rarely encountered it.

He suddenly realized that this world had no hell.

"What... is Hell?" His confusion was not feigned.

Yushan Daoist said, "When the great dao was first formed and order established, all things in the world balanced themselves with yin and yang. Taiyin, the sun. Mortal World, Underworld... Heaven and earth divided into yin and yang, the Mortal World being the domain of the living, and the Underworld the domain of the dead. The Reincarnation Dao initially connected yin and yang. And the Underworld was Hell."

"Where did Hell go then?"

Yushan Daoist said, "Hell is controlled by the Heavenly Dao."

"Why?"

"Hell was transformed from the unrooted turbid qi of the Great Wilderness Cyan Dragon, existing as the utmost yin and malevolent entity, containing all filthy things of the world. The Heavenly Dao controls Hell to collect the obsessions of all beings and create the True Demon."

"So the True Demon was indeed created by the Heavenly Dao!" Fan Wubing’s eyes sparkled with realization.

"Seems you’ve reached this understanding already." Yushan Daoist said, "I was once the only person in the world who comprehended the Reincarnation Dao. Thus, I alone saw the empty and dirty Hell. Because I glimpsed this secret... I became one whom the Heavenly Dao would not accept."

"Is that why you deliberately inverted the celestial order to taint yourself?"

Yushan Daoist laughed, "It’s also a reason to enter reincarnation and seek out those whose missions remain uncompleted. Back to the point... An An might be someone who returned from Hell. However, who she was in her past life, and why she entered Hell, I do not know. These questions might be yours to answer."

Fan Wubing watched An An chatting happily with the junior brothers and sisters in the distance and said,

"I will protect her well."

Then he understood why the will of the True Dragon could suppress An An’s murderous aura.

After all, Hell was formed from unrooted turbid qi. And the unrooted qi is itself the last breath of the Great Wilderness Cyan Dragon.

"An An must have endured countless pains in Hell... So..." Yushan Daoist smiled, "I was worrying too much. You care for her deeply, how could you not treat her with gentleness."

Fan Wubing quickly said, "I only see her as a little sister! Master, please don’t think differently. Loving a ten-year-old girl like that would be quite embarrassing to admit."

"Haha..."

"By the way, Master, when you were injured back then, it wasn’t to drive away a Great Demon, was it?"