Chapter 98 – To kill or not to kill

“Don’t say… Aaaaaah…” Gu Du Xing waved his hands dismissively as he looked Chu Yang with a lost expression. He almost wanted to kick Chu Yang. This was too much! Someone so clueless like this advanced so quickly. While I witnessed it from beginning to end at that… I, myself, have been pursuing this state for so many years and have not experienced it even once.

With that thought, Gu Du Xing suddenly became so emotional he almost cried, “I… I should be the one who advanced.”

Chu Yang didn’t have any answers. How could he not want Gu Du Xing to quickly advance in his cultivation? After all, his own strength was still too weak; advancing by two grades was of little use… On the other hand, Gu Du Xing was a grade five Sword Great Master. Even if he advanced by only one grade, his fighting strength would greatly increase.

However, this sort of thing depended entirely on chance and the person’s understanding. If Chu Yang tried to help him understand before his due time, it might even cause a delay in his advancement in cultivation. It could even lead to Gu Du Xing never being able to experience the states that Chu Yang told him about!

It can only be yours if you experienced it yourself. No matter how good the other person’s experience was, it was still their own thoughts. How could two people’s thoughts be the same?

If Gu Du Xing had already experienced what Chu Yang experienced earlier during his cultivation, then Chu Yang would imitate the sword spirit and give him some hints on how to get the best results… But, currently Gu Du Xing had yet to arrive at these states. Telling him anything at all would not be good for his future.

Chu Yang understood this principle; Gu Du Xing understood as well. Therefore, they were both gloomy.

“This… that state, how did you enter it?” Gu Du Xing asked with a ray of hope. But as soon as those words escaped from his mouth, he immediately shook his head, “Never mind. I am guessing you don’t entirely know it either. This kind of mysterious state, even if you knew ahead of time, you couldn’t enter it anyway.”

“Very wise. You know a lot.” Chu Yang praised with a thumb up. But that kind of compliment only made Gu Du Xing’s face flashed red and white; he became even more depressed…

“I don’t know how to advance into such states. More importantly, I cannot tell you about my own experience. But I know one thing…” Chu Yang looked at Gu Du Xing, and said slowly, “…That is… You are in too much of a rush. You should know that haste makes waste! The more you rush, the less you will accomplish. Currently, you have not entered any states. You could keep training hard, but you will end up destroying yourself!”

Gu Du Xing was stunned… He suddenly stood erect with a pensive look… These words Chu Yang just spoke seemed to have struck a chord and woke him up…

He quietly thought for a moment. His breathing normalized, and he said calmly, “That is right. I have been in too much of a hurry. This was my dark side. Your experiences and your advancements are your own thoughts and chances… If I am to have my own experience, that would be my own chance. Why must I forcefully ask for it? I only need myself.”

Chu Yang smiled and said profoundly, “In the end, you will need to depend on yourself.”

These words were part of what Chu Yang just came to understand. Any enlightenments related to the world of martial arts could not be told to Gu Du Xing. But enlightenment about life could definitely be shared.

“Depend on yourself.” Gu Du Xing’s right hand held tightly onto the hilt of his sword. His whole body seemed as if it had been transformed into an unsheathed sword, and radiated a sharp energy… His eyes gradually brightened.

Depend on yourself did not mean to not get any help from friends and live alone your entire life… It simply meant to rely on your best efforts and your own state of mind. Of course, Gu Du Xing understood this very well.

“Chu Yang! Brother! You have helped me once again.” Gu Du Xing said sincerely as he gazed upon the morning light rising from the east.

“You once said if there was a mountain of knives in front of me, walk on you without any regrets. “ Chu Yang smiled, “If that’s the case, before going over that mountain, what is this little favor I am doing for you?”

Gu Du Xing smiled and stood up. With a rarely seen peaceful smile, he repeated softly, “Right, if in front of you is a mountain of knives, I will let you walk on me to cross it.”

He said these words really quietly, barely emitting a sound… Chu Yang could only see his lips move slightly but could not hear what he was saying. But Gu Du Xing knew that this was no different than him making an oath.

He knew Chu Yang’s previous words were out of jest. But Gu Du Xing was also sure that if, one day, there was a mountain of knives in front of him, Chu Yang would probably do the same for him.

There were some things that need not be said; they were better off kept inside one’s heart. Therefore, Gu Du Xing did not say anything else… he simply took those words and engraved them deep in his heart.

“By tomorrow, this wall border will be complete. As for the rooms inside, I have already given the work orders. For now, I want to go out for a bit.” Gu Du Xing stared at the calm lake surface as he spoke, “If we just keep sitting here, no martial experts will come and join us. I need to go out and choose a few more people. Also to… kill a few more people!”

“Okay, leave all of this to me.” (walkthejianghu.com)

Gu Du Xing said slowly, “I ran away from home to also give myself a chance to train. A phenomenon of heaven and earth had appeared; all of the Nine Heavens will change. Middle Three Heavens and Upper Three Heavens all have disciples of large family clans coming out to train. Moreover, they are all outstanding talents from one clan or another…”

Gu Du Xing did not have to finish for Chu Yang to understand his intentions. He interrupted, “So you intend to recruit these people?” The moment Chu Yang finished his question, he immediately felt disturbed… The world is changing, the Nine Heavens are changing, family clans training… what does all this mean?

This never happened in the previous life… The appearance of these people in Lower Three Heavens, what will happen now? How will fate be affected? What will happen to this continent? What effects will all these things have?

Gu Du Xing thought for a little, and finally shook his head, “I am not sure…”

He thought a little more and sighed, “I am not sure at all.”

Chu Yang smiled. He understood Gu Du Xing’s meaning when he said the phrase “… not sure…” First, when it came to getting talented people from powerful families into Heavenly Armament Pavilion, it would be difficult. Each of these people was extremely talented; how could they agree to be subservient to others? Second, if he did manage to get someone to join, that person would not want to be under anyone. In fact, that person might just want to take over the whole thing. In that case, he was not sure if he could stop that person.

After all, how could these little masters not take a few powerful guards with them when they go out to train? And the strength of just Gu Du Xing and Chu Yang was still very weak.

“The two sons of your foster father, which one will be coming down here?” Chu Yang asked.

“They are both coming down.” Gu Du Xing let out a faint smile, “They are very competitive with each other; neither of them would agree to sit still.” Gu Du Xing smiled and said cynically.

“Should we kill them?” Chu Yang suggested sincerely, “They have always walked all over you. Later on, they surely will not leave you alone. Have you ever thought about this?”

Gu Du Xing was shocked. His eyes expressed mixed feelings as he looked at Chu Yang, “If I had intended to kill them, I would have killed them already.” He turned and said quietly, “No matter what, they are still my foster father’s sons. He only has these two sons. Plus, they are Sister Xiao Miao’s brothers. If the two of them died… I am afraid my foster father and Sister Xiao Miao would be devastated. As for the Gu family, they would no longer have a successor.”

“It is strange, but I want to kill them more than you do. But I will never kill them. Because of the Gu family, because my foster father’s care for me was as great as a mountain, and because of Sister Xiao Miao.” Gu Du Xing said sincerely, “I would even protect them if they were in danger.”

He laughed bitterly, “It’s contradictory, right?”

“Gu Du Xing.” Chu Yang said earnestly, “You are truly a great man. No, you are a model of what a man should be. To kill is a great man. But to not kill is a role model for all men.”

“To kill is a great man. But to not kill is a role model for all men.” Gu Du Xing quietly repeated. A little later, he smiled and shook his head without saying anything. He quietly stood for a while, looking at the eastern sky. Afterward, he took a deep breath and said, “The sun is up, I am going. At the latest, I should be back within a month.”

Without waiting for Chu Yang’s answer, he lifted his arms. Like a gliding eagle, he did not fly up, but touched the water surface with his feet twice before reaching the shore on the other side. From a distance, he waved goodbye. His body shook twice, and he completely disappeared.

On the lake, the two ripples created where Gu Du Xing’s feet touched the water were still slowly spreading outward.