Chapter 632 - 625: What is Steadfastness
’I have to move quickly. Every moment I delay, this world sinks further into ruin, and more suffering is born.’
Dong Wanming muttered to himself. Just as he was about to move, his body suddenly went rigid.
An immense sense of danger suddenly erupted within the darkness around him.
In an instant, the hair on his body stood on end. He whipped his head around to face the darkness behind him.
There, standing silently in the shadows at some unknown point, was a tall figure. He wore a magnificent robe and a crown with dangling pearls and jade.
His eyes were filled with a terrifying, predatory light, yet his body seemed to emit no presence at all, as if he were hidden in another dimension.
"Impressive intuition. Detecting my presence within a second of my arrival... that’s no easy feat."
The tall figure gazed at Dong Wanming’s pupils, now shrunk to pinpricks. The corner of his mouth lifted in a jeer, like someone who had just found an amusing toy.
"You didn’t actually believe you could sneak into my territory undetected, did you?"
"This entire land is bathed in my light. Not a single shadow can escape my sight."
"From the looks of you, you don’t seem to be from the Donghua Sect, sent to gather intelligence. With your pathetic level of strength, you couldn’t possibly be here to kill me, could you?"
"Let me think... Although you’re weak, a human who has reached your realm shouldn’t be a complete unknown."
The tall figure spoke with amusement, then lowered his head as if in thought.
’This person is...’
Dong Wanming stared at the figure before him and drew a sharp breath.
’There’s no mistake.’ When Zhou Qian fell in battle, he had been in the conference hall. He had seen the terrifying being’s face clearly on the screen, and it was identical to the man before him now.
The Celestial Demon Ancestor, the Scorching Sun Tyrant, Rainbow!
He had used his Secret Technique to completely conceal his presence. Yet, less than half an hour after entering this massive city, his enemy had already pinpointed his location and come for him personally. ’Such an unbelievable ability...’
He looked up at the Scorching Sun in the sky—a sun that manifested only in the world of Spirit—and seemed to understand.
’An assassin who can’t even conceal his own presence... Is this the gap between myself and an Ancient True King’s Ancestral Incarnation?’
’It’s a chasm as wide as heaven and earth. Utterly insurmountable.’
Despite his earlier firm resolve, a natural fear and doubt now bloomed in his heart.
’Facing a being like this, is my sacrifice truly meaningful?’
’I’m willing to risk my life, but if my life is no more than an ant’s to him, does my death still have any value?’
’Is the path I’ve chosen correct? Can doing this truly give humanity a glimmer of hope?’
’Or is it even possible for humanity to defeat such a hopelessly oppressive Power?’
An irresistible doubt took root in Dong Wanming’s heart.
He was only human, after all. And to be human is to feel fear, to doubt, to be weak, to second-guess, to be terrified.
"Ah, I remember now. Dong Wanming, successor to the Holy Heart Sect of the Donghua Martial Arts Realm. Hmm? A lineage of assassins? Hahaha! You snuck into my territory... surely you don’t intend to assassinate me? No, you can’t be serious. Do you truly harbor such a naive fantasy? Are you here for my amusement?"
The next moment, Rainbow seemed to have finally matched him with the Data on Donghua Martial Artists in his memory. An exaggerated look of shock spread across his face, but the mockery in his eyes only grew more intense.
The peals of laughter battered Dong Wanming’s body and will, making the trembling pressure in his heart grow ever larger, ever heavier.
’Is it meaningful? Is there hope? Is it worth it? Is it even possible?’
’I don’t know. Nothing is certain!’
’I’m too weak. I can’t win. I can’t overcome this. I can’t possibly succeed...’
Doubt and hesitation spread through him like a plague, festering.
But suddenly, a figure leaped into his mind.
It was the same figure he had seen in the national museum—the one standing on the execution platform, eyes firm and proud.
In that instant, his Spirit seemed to be transported back to that era by the image of that figure.
He felt as if he had entered the very heart of that figure, hearing his innermost thoughts—a torrent of voices like a fevered dream.
’Is what I’m doing worth it?’
’Will the Donghua Association be saved?’
’Will my sacrifice have value?’
’Will we be victorious?’
’Should I have retreated when I had the chance? Fled Shangjing to preserve my life and fight another day?’
Within that long-dead shell, he heard countless voices echoing his own current doubts.
His body trembled.
’That’s right. For us, now, all of history is set in stone. The outcome is known. We know their sacrifices were valuable, that their blood would usher in a new era, that this country and its people would ultimately triumph.’
’But back then, before those great martyrs made their sacrifices, everything was unknown.’
’The path forward was uncertain, the obstacles immense. At the time, the very realization of their ideals would have been the greatest of miracles.’
’They couldn’t have known if their sacrifice would have value, if their blood would be shed in vain, or if their tragic heroism would earn them nothing more than a fleeting sigh of pity.’
’Unless you were there, you could never truly understand the iron will hidden behind each of those tragic, heroic acts.’
’Though their bodies were mortal, their unyielding will had long since transcended time and matter, branding itself deep into the unseen void.’
And now, experiencing it firsthand, Dong Wanming—amidst the intense fear, pressure, uncertainty, and doubt—finally understood the will of those martyrs. He understood that spirit of absolute, epic resolve.
’It was the will to carve a path even when facing a dead end, to become a beacon in the night sky even when facing a darkness that could not be dispelled.’
He understood. He knew what true resolve meant.
His tense body slowly relaxed. The tension vanished from his face. His posture, once coiled like a wary beast, slowly straightened until he stood tall and unbending, as if he could hold up the sky.
At that moment, his resolute posture and determined eyes were so very similar to the statue of Mr. Tan.
TAP!!
The next instant, he froze. He felt an arm come to rest on his shoulder. Then more arms appeared, and more, until countless figures materialized vaguely behind him.
"Rest easy. We are all behind you. You have never been alone."
A single voice—and yet, a million voices—thundered in his mind.
A genuine smile touched his lips.
BOOM!!!
In the sky, a sky illuminated by the Scorching Sun, a brilliant ray of light suddenly appeared. It was like a ribbon of color, an unrolling scroll, a surging tide. Even the blazing radiance of the Scorching Sun could not eclipse its light.