AZI Volume 5 Chapter 23

Within the dreamscape—

"Hmph."

The Tai Xuan Emperor snorts coldly, and remarks—

"Looking forward to working with you again, my ass."

There's no way the Tai Xuan Emperor would give up on taking over Long Hua's body so easily.

"…"

Raising her right hand, a golden orb of light that is akin to a sun, manifests on top of the Tai Xuan Emperor's palm.

This is none other than the "Heart," however—

"…Tch."

Despite her attempts to push the "Heart" into her chest, the Tai Xuan Emperor feels an invisible force of energy repelling her hand away—making it impossible to conduct the fusion.

"Dao He Tian Xue, you and your disciple both… Dammit."

Raising her head with an expression of frustration on her face, the Tai Xuan Emperor grinds her teeth together, and tosses the "Heart" aside.

She has no idea how Dao He Tian Xue had managed to find out about the "Heart," but it is one of the items that can only be extracted by Long Hua through an exchange.

And naturally, this frustrates the Tai Xuan Emperor to no end.

"One of these days, I'll definitely stomp this surnamed * beneath my foot!"

...…

As time passes with nothing of note happening, Long Hua decides to take out his fishing, and see if he can catch anything in these dreary waters.

"…"

Holding a bowl of curry rice in his left hand, while a spoon occupies the other, Long Hua waits for the line to be pulled on.

And eventually—

"Anything?"

Ye Chen comes over, and towards his question, Long Hua shakes his head before setting the finished bowl of curry rice to the side.

"Come to think of it, I don't think, I've ever seen you wear anything else, surnamed Ye."

Despite how much time has passed, Long Hua has only ever seen Ye Chen wearing the same set of attire, which consists of a short-sleeved black jacket over a black shirt, coupled with a loose pair of black pants, and fingerless gloves.

Shrugging a shoulder, Ye Chen replies—

"Doesn't matter what you wear, so long as it holds, right?"

"What about hygiene related issues?"

"I got ten pairs of the same set."

"…"

Towards the odd look that is being directed at him by Long Hua, Ye Chen asks—

"You want one?"

"To hell with that."

"Ai, women are said to dress to impress. Men on the other hand, I think, sticking to practicality is better. No need to fix what's not broken is there?"

"You plan to stay single for life?"

"Oh, what's this? My colleague who just got married is giving me life advice? Are you looking down on me after getting a wife?"

Towards Ye Chen's questions, Long Hua smiles with amusement, to which, the former smiles back, while placing his hands onto the guard rail.

"I… My Hazard Level was 1,810 last year, recently, it hit 1,900."

Constricting his eyes, Long Hua asks—

"Was it caused by the two Immortals?"

From what Long Hua is able to remember, anyone with a Hazard Level of 2,000 suffers from the risk of full Apotheosis.

"Nah, it's always been rising at a steady rate. The researchers can't pinpoint the cause as to why. Although… I guess, overuse of Partial-Apotheosis is a contributing cause?"

Even if it was caused by him, Long Hua wouldn't feel much ache in regards to the matter; however—

"…That night when you said, your life is the most worthless one-"

"Yeah, that's why. Gacha is a good thing, don't you think? It's shit for gambling addicts, but for me, it's a software that lets me spend all my hard-earned cash that I might not have the chance to spend the day after."

An odd smile appears on Long Hua's face in response to Ye Chen's words.

The weapon spirits of the Leng Bing Realm—at times, they feel much more human than the practitioners, who would backstab one another for a single droplet of resource.

Raising a subtle sigh, Long Hua remarks—

"What a bleak way of looking at it."

(I personally think this man speaks the truth, you could learn a thing or two from him, *-laoban.)

Ignoring the Tai Xuan Emperor, Long Hua asks—

"Surnamed Ye, if you had a choice between being a hero or a demon lord, which would you choose? Naturally, you can also choose to be a villager A or B if you wanted to."

"What kind of question is that? Hmm."

Contemplating for a bit, Ye Chen answers—

"I guess, the hero? Since he always wins in the end?"

"Hero, is it?"

"And you, surnamed Long?"

Grabbing the calabash, Long Hua takes a sip out of it, prior to replying—

"I think, the role of the hero—is a role that should only be played by a masochist."

"The hell? Is this entire question supposed to be a way to diss me?"

Taking out a drinking glass, Long Hua fills it with cherry blossom wine, and passes it to Ye Chen.

As Ye Chen receives the drinking glass, Long Hua explains—

"The fate of a hero is to suffer. They're constantly being pushed left and right. …While everyone else drowns in a sea of despair, a hero must stand their ground, and step forward—to guide the deadbeats along. They must become the shining beacon of hope that others may follow—towards a future, where they may survive. Tell me then, if a hero isn't a masochist, then what are they?"

"…"

Towards the unusual definition that Long Hua had given, Ye Chen is a bit speechless, as he takes a sip of wine.

Savoring the taste of the beverage, Ye Chen remarks—

"Oh? This is quite good. Wait, don't tell me your calabash is all wine?"

"Relax, I don't get drunk easily. That—is a luxury to be honest. In any case—going back to your question, a demon lord is always doomed to fail, so I wouldn't want to be one either. After all, who would want to become another person's cannon fodder?"

"Then, would you be a villager?"

Shaking his head, Long Hua replies—

"I want power to stand on my own, but I wouldn't want to be a nation-bounded king either. No, maybe something—similar to a king? But also different? Hmm… In any case, I don't have an answer right now."

"…"

Finishing the glass, Ye Chen finds it difficult to continue the conversation.

Eventually, Ye Chen raises a sigh, and says—

"Sorry, I can't think of anything to say back."

"I didn't expect an answer from anyone when I made that remark. Consider it just me ranting."

"…"

Passing the drinking glass back to Long Hua, Ye Chen turns around, and says—

"I'm going to check in on the others. Try not to fall off."

"Un."

Staring at the used glass, Long Hua directs his attention towards the vast seas with narrowed eyes.

Eventually, he mutters—

"Don't want to be a hero. Don't want to be a demon lord. Don't want to be a king. I want to…"

Tossing the drinking glass out into the open seas, Long Hua smiles in a dark manner, and continues to mutter—

"Become someone, who can treat the entirety of the world as a game board."