Chapter 128: The Final Madness

The withered petals remained, yet the pure white blossoms were gone forever. The scattered, resilient flashes of faint white light served as the sole proof of their existence, but all of this had already become a thing of the past.

The flower of betrayal had ultimately failed to escape the destiny of being betrayed.

Everything in this world possesses its own unique trajectory; this is fate—arriving with birth, departing only with death.

……

"Farewell, Man Luo. The era you represent must now come to an end." A faint golden light shimmered in Macarius's eyes as he gazed with deep emotion at Man Luo, who was once again summoning the black mandala. It was evident that Man Luo was still attempting to resist, unwilling to perish in such a simple manner.

The black mandala trembled slightly amidst the ice and snow, dense fractures reappearing across its surface as if it were on the verge of shattering completely at any moment, dissolving into specks of black light—or perhaps resembling flying ash even more.

"Do you all want me to die that badly?" Man Luo's deep voice emanated from within the black mandala, surprisingly calm, making it hard to believe those words came from Man Luo at all.

Luo Hanhai was momentarily stunned, his previously relaxed nerves tensing once again. He knew this was the calm before the storm—an unnatural tranquility that invariably precedes a final, frantic struggle.

Macarius sighed, responding in a heavy tone, "I think you understand this better than I do. This is the cultivation of Gu; we were never meant to coexist."

"Then why are you doing this! Why! Why not fight to the death among yourselves! Why not devour him first!" Man Luo roared in resentment, utterly unable to comprehend the actions of the others.

"That is because he conquered us." A relaxed smile graced Macarius's face as he cast a profound glance at Luo Hanhai. "Sthenelus learned of kindness from him, Xiaofeng received friendship, the phantom witnessed his resilience, and I am willing to share my wisdom with him..."

"You alone treated everyone with deceit, attempting to control everything through sheer calculation. You opened Pandora's box, and from it, all sins originated..."

"Yet matters were far less complicated than you imagined. We, whom you went to such lengths to plot against, are much simpler than you thought. Simplicity breeds fearlessness, and fearlessness shattered all your original plans..."

"You cannot fathom why Xiaofeng was willing to risk her life for someone she had only met a day prior, nor can you understand why Sthenelus betrayed the very existence he feared most..."

"Of course, you were madness itself, evil itself, inherently adept at betrayal. That is why you grew powerful—so powerful that you lost all sense of proportion, unwilling to relinquish your ego, vainly attempting to devour everything and become the Gu King..."

"Yet you forgot, we were already dead to begin with. Even if we were granted another lease on life, what of it? It would be nothing more than fleeting mist and smoky dreams. We never cared for life to begin with, so why should we fear death?"

"Man Luo! You were wrong! We were never the same! If we are spirits, then you are a malign spirit. We are worlds apart—how could you ever hope to measure us by your own standards?"

At this, Macarius gently exhaled, as if speaking too quickly had left him breathless. "Hoo... Man Luo, you can now rest in peace and return to the void."

"You... you all..." Struck as if by lightning, Man Luo stood in silence for a moment before venomously retorting, "Don't even think about breaking my will! I still have one technique left unused. Isn't it far too early to send me to my death?"

"Luo Hanhai! Go to hell!"

The black mandala could no longer withstand the boundless ice and snow. It fractured, shattered, and disintegrated into swirling ashes across the sky.

In its nobility, it seemed to disdain the entreaties of the mortal realm, holding even the erica's sorrow over betrayal in contempt. Deep down, it had always looked down upon its host. To its mind, this bout of life and death was merely a fleeting experience, and its next incarnation would be even more noble and exquisite.

And so, it departed in silence, leaving completely, vanishing utterly without a backward glance or a shred of attachment, melting into the endless darkness.

……

The black mandala dissipated, leaving only Man Luo beneath the ice and snow, his eyes blazing red, a bizarre smile plastered across his face as he laughed frantically amidst the howling blizzard.

"Hahahahaha! Though I die, none of you have won!"

Even as he laughed, his form remained illusory, only to be instantly solidified by the biting frost, transforming completely into a crystal-clear ice sculpture before shattering into fragments, leaving not a trace behind.

……

"This... what is happening to me?" Man Luo's demise brought no joy to Luo Hanhai; instead, he plunged into a deeper abyss of torment. Trembling, he stared at his own hands, watching in horror as his palms, normally a pale yellowish hue, turned pitch black.

He instinctively wanted to blink, but his eyes seemed no longer to belong to him. His body gradually lost sensation, and his consciousness began to blur, as if something were devouring him in an instant.

At the very edge of his fading consciousness, he seemed to smack his lips, recalling the sensation of a searing warmth instantly spreading throughout his entire body, accompanied by a tingling numbness and refreshing chill that pierced straight to his crown.

"That must have been the venom of the black mandala. Truly quite a refreshing way to go..."

Such was the final stray thought in his mind—truly foolish to the last degree.

……

The bellflower within his body gently swayed, emitting a crisp yet fleeting chime, before shattering in turn, transforming into a stream of deep blue Qi.

The deep blue Qi exuded an intense freezing frost that enveloped Luo Hanhai entirely, freezing him eternally at this exact second—the very second the black mandala's venom erupted—thus barring the Grim Reaper from harvesting his soul.

……

The inn, which had previously returned to normalcy, was once again plunged into darkness for reasons unknown. At the center of the gloom, a faint golden light flickered, carving out a rare sanctuary amidst the dark. Sthenelus and Macarius gazed at Luo Hanhai, now encased in a massive block of ice, as if discussing something in hushed tones.

"Is this fate?" Sthenelus asked, his lips cracked at an angle, forcing a bitter smile as he looked doubtfully at Macarius.

Macarius, however, remained quite optimistic. A warm, genial smile still hung on his face as he leisurely replied, "Every one of us came into this world bearing a destiny. Whether you are aware of it or not, we tread along this predetermined trajectory. Perhaps this time, all our fates have been tied to him."

"You mean..." Sthenelus glanced around for a moment, looking at the surrounding darkness that hemmed them in on all sides. He felt utterly insignificant, as though the giant beast of darkness need only twitch its body for them to be swallowed into oblivion without a trace.

Macarius looked calmly into the boundless darkness and said softly, "Indeed. My destiny has already appeared before me, and I am about to face it, following its path to walk through whatever time remains to us."