Chapter 1162, Was It the World That Was Wrong?

Translator: Silavin

 

Yet no matter how fine one’s character was, faced with an absolute gulf in power, Jiang Baishen still could not make any meaningful waves.

 

All the more so after every member of the Sacred Jiang Family present had been cut down, leaving him as the sole survivor on the field.

 

Jian Ying and the others joined the encirclement of Jiang Baishen, striking at him from every direction, front and back alike.

 

Lu Fan alone had already been enough to drive Jiang Baishen into a desperate state. Now that Lu Fan had gained several more helping hands, Jiang Baishen found it harder to hold on.

 

All the more so because among Lu Fan’s helpers was Ouyang Bai Ge, a veteran Ancient God.

 

Throughout the entire battle, Ouyang Bai Ge had not exerted anything close to her full strength, having done nothing more than summon a handful of Void Insects, which proved more than enough to deal with all opponents.

 

To contend with Jiang Baishen, Ouyang Bai Ge now summoned a variety of Void Insect known as Soul Devouring Insects.

 

This particular Void Insect was extraordinarily small, no larger than a grain of rice by appearance, seemingly harmless.

 

Yet the moment they were summoned, they poured across the sky in a surging mass and swept toward Jiang Baishen.

 

They could cause no direct harm to Players themselves, but they possessed one singular ability, which was the capacity to devour energy.

 

The Talismans Jiang Baishen released, though extraordinarily mysterious, were Talismans nonetheless.

 

And so, these Soul Devouring Insects could consume those Talismans as well.

 

Each time Jiang Baishen released a Talisman, it was devoured completely by the Soul Devouring Insects almost the instant it left his hand, rendering it incapable of displaying any of its power.

 

In this manner, Ouyang Bai Ge had effectively sealed off Jiang Baishen’s Talisman Skills.

 

Jiang Baishen’s Profession Characteristics were such that no less than half his strength depended upon his Talismans.

 

With Ouyang Bai Ge sealing his Talisman Skills, he could bring no more than seventy percent of his Combat Power to bear.

 

Left with no other recourse, Jiang Baishen could only use the Golden Light Talisman to elevate his own strength and engage everyone in close physical combat.

 

Yet fighting at close range against so many opponents, with Pet Dragons joining the fray from every side, even with his mighty strength, he could not hold for long.

 

Jiang Baishen proved tenacious in the extreme, enduring in circumstances of severe disadvantage for a surprisingly long time.

 

In the end, however, he gradually began to falter, his position growing worse and worse, the wounds accumulating across his body ever more numerous.

 

The Ancient God Power within him worked without ceasing to restore his injuries, providing him with an inexhaustible flood of vitality.

 

Yet in the end, he was pinned to the ground by Lu Fan and Ye Wuxian striking in concert, each wielding a Legendary Grade weapon, blood gushing from his mouth as the Ancient God Power began spilling out rather than pooling inward to heal him.

 

*Thud.*

 

The current state of Jiang Baishen was like a vessel of shattered porcelain, through which even a spring welling constantly from within could not be retained. All its clear waters seeped out through the cracks, and what could such a vessel hope to hold?

 

Jiang Baishen at this point had no strength left to fight. Death was purely a question of time.

 

Seeing that Jiang Baishen was on the very brink of death, the others finally ceased their assault.

 

Though there had been little exchange of words between them and Jiang Baishen, he had fought against many of them while committing not a single error from beginning to end. His skills in combat and his bearing alike were things that genuinely commanded respect.

 

Lu Fan was in no hurry to finish Jiang Baishen off. He stood at his side, looking down at him and said, “I remember you. You are the Sacred Master of the Sacred Jiang Family. You are truly powerful. It is a pity that you were too weak to really obstruct us.”

 

Jiang Baishen smiled faintly, blood trickling from the corner of his mouth.

 

His body was without strength, yet he felt, strangely, something resembling relief.

 

“I knew I could not stop you.” He said. “But since the Slaughter Ancient God ordered me to intercept you and hold you here, I could not entertain the slightest intention of retreat. To reach the island above, to enter my Sacred Jiang Family’s domain, to disturb the Slaughter Ancient God, there was only one path, and that was over my dead body.”

 

Ye Wuxian spoke then in a cool, unhurried tone. “You held onto this conviction despite that? Doesn’t that mean you knew from the very beginning that you would certainly die here?”

 

Jiang Baishen gave a small nod. “You all possess Ancient God Divine Seats. I am merely someone akin to an Ancient God Slave. Of course I could not stop you. It is precisely because I knew I would fall that even now, with this moment truly upon me, I have no fear whatsoever, nor any regret to speak of.”

 

At this, he looked around at them all and gave a soft, unhurried laugh. “I know what you want from me. But even if you kill me, I must tell you, you cannot possibly succeed. The Slaughter Ancient God will become the God King of this era, opening the path to a new one.”

 

“This era is, in truth, a wretched thing. Whether one speaks of ‘Human nature’ or anything else, it is just wretched. I believe only when this era is overturned can this world find salvation. I may die, but if my death can bring about the turning of this era, I find that to be a worthy thing.”

 

Lu Fan shook his head and sighed. “I did not expect your obsession to run deeper than the others. How are you so certain that the new era the Slaughter Ancient God would create would be any better than this world?”

 

Jiang Baishen smiled. “I do not know. But if this world does not disappear, how can a new world come to be?”

 

Lu Fan listened, fell silent for a moment, then stepped forward and took hold of his Refined Undefiled.

 

“You are truly a pitiable figure. I thought you might be some sort of tragic hero. It turns out you are nothing more than a fool without a single thought in your head. For the sake of something you yourself do not even know, you gave up so much of your time, your effort, and even your own life and the lives of so many others. If you were truly a hero, what you ought to have done was find a way to change the injustice you found unacceptable.”

 

“If someone wronged the Sacred Jiang Family, then strike back at those who wronged you rather than blaming the world itself, concluding that the world is wrong. By your manner of thinking, no matter what era it is, you would find it wrong, and you would find reason to seek its overthrow. Ask yourself, was it the person who was wrong, or was it the entire world?”

 

Jiang Baishen had truly never considered this question before. When he and the Sacred Jiang Family had been wronged, all he had ever thought was that this world contained far too many people who deserved to die.

 

But those who deserved to die were certain people, not the world itself.

 

This, perhaps, was the truth of the matter.

 

For a moment, Jiang Baishen seemed to realise that everything he had done all this time had been a terrible mistake.

 

To only realise it now was, plainly, it had been far too late.

 

“Go and rest for eternity contemplating all of this at your leisure once you are gone!” Lu Fan’s voice was cold as he finished speaking. He gripped Refined Undefiled and activated Dragon Fang Strike once more.

 

*Crack!*

 

The impact of the Skill shattered Jiang Baishen’s body into dust, completely ending him.

 

Silavin: For some reason, I was rooting for the bad guys this time. IDK, feels like Lu Fan hadn’t had a real setback so far. The journey’s been too smooth.