Striving for Science C74

Flying clods of earth slammed into Shen Chang'an. He looked at the large pit less than half a step away from him, struggling to roll to the side.

"Ugh!" Spitting out a mouthful of blood, Shen Chang'an said to Grandpa Yang who was trying to approach him, "Grandpa Yang, don't come closer! Tell everyone to stay away from this courtyard, no matter what they hear, they can't come near."

The poplar tree yao leaned against the pillar on the corridor, his legs almost giving way under the terrifying pressure that permeated the air. This fear stemmed from the instinct deep within his soul. He felt that there were terrifying eyes in the heavens and earth watching them. If he dared to take a step forward, he would be obliterated in the blink of an eye.

But seeing Shen Chang'an lying on the ground, almost unable to move, he knelt down with a thud: "Please... bless us, Heaven!"

"Grandpa Yang?!" Shen Chang'an looked at Grandpa Yang in disbelief. When he was very young, Grandpa Yang had taught him that only he could save his own fate, and begging Heaven was useless.

Yet, at this moment, this elderly man was begging Heaven and earth for him.

In his urgency, Shen Chang'an hadn't noticed that such a commotion had occurred in the courtyard. His usually light-sleeping grandparents hadn't woken up. He wanted to persuade Grandpa Yang to leave, but another thunderclap was about to strike.

In his hazy consciousness, it was as if a voice was asking him if he wanted to take back what he had just said.

"No." Shen Chang'an gritted his teeth. He didn't understand why that thing in the darkness was trying to stop him from blessing Dao Nian, but subconsciously, he felt that if he took back his words at this moment, Dao Nian would lose something important that he might have been able to obtain.

He didn't understand where this thought came from, but he clenched his jaw, refusing to budge. It was as if something heavy was pressing down on him in the air, and it was getting heavier and heavier, making it hard for him to breathe.

"Do you regret saying those words?"

"No."

"Do you regret it!"

"No, no, no!" Shen Chang'an widened his eyes, staring at the sky, "I said no, and that's that. If you have the guts, strike me down!"

The second thunderbolt, which had been brewing for a long time, finally descended upon Shen Chang'an with a force that could crush anything in its path.

"Unrepentant."

The giant thunderbolt pierced through the clouds and charged towards him. Shen Chang'an looked at the giant thunderbolt about to fall from the sky, sprawled on the ground in a big letter "X."

If only... he could see Dao Nian again.

All the Double Eleven packages had arrived, but unfortunately, he couldn't join everyone in unpacking them and guessing whether the quality of the items inside was good or bad.

Un... willing.

He dug his fingers into the dirt. The immense pressure caused his nose, mouth, and ears to bleed, and his head buzzed.

He had to live. He had to live.

Mustering all his strength, Shen Chang'an staggered to his feet and dodged to the left a few steps. The thunderbolt struck the ground beside him, creating a pit two meters deep.

He looked up at the sky with a dazed expression, muttering, "From now on, Dao Nian will be able to live freely and happily, without anyone stopping him."

After saying this, he coughed up a large mouthful of blood and fell into the deep pit created by the thunderbolt.

"Chang'an!" The poplar tree yao lunged towards the courtyard, but an invisible barrier seemed to block him. He pounded on it desperately, "Chang'an! Shen Chang'an!"

What in the world is going on?

Who struck the lightning? Such terrifying pressure, could it be Heavenly Dao?

But why would Heavenly Dao do this? Chang'an lived with him, surely there was some affection between them?

As the third bolt of lightning was about to strike, the poplar tree yao asked in despair, "Heaven... is this how heartless you are?"

Then he saw that the lightning, halfway through its descent, was abruptly stopped.

***

Stepping into the endless void, Dao Nian looked at the chaotic figure, "Great Dao?"

The chaos slowly coalesced into a vaguely humanoid form, its features indistinct. It looked at Dao Nian, "Why do you possess human emotions?"

"How ridiculous, the remnant consciousness of the emotionless Great Dao, filled with jealousy, anger, resentment, and hatred." Dao Nian spread his fingers slightly, and a Heavenly Merit Pen appeared in his hand. "The Great Dao has long since perished, you have no right to exist."

"If I were not here, wouldn't the entire world be at your mercy?" The remnant of the Great Dao's voice was hoarse, as if countless voices in the world were speaking the same words. "Heavenly Dao, you were born from me. You want to completely destroy me, but it won't be that easy."

Hearing this, a hint of a cold smile appeared on Dao Nian's usually emotionless face. If this remnant was truly so powerful, it wouldn't have been hiding for all these years, afraid to show itself in front of him.

"All things in the world have their own order. The day the Great Dao fell was the beginning of a new era, a time of constant change." Dao Nian drew a line through the void, illuminating countless stars. "You are not the Great Dao, so don't dream of being reborn as the new rules of heaven and earth."

As soon as he finished speaking, the stars shifted, their power locking the remnant of the Great Dao firmly within the array, preventing its escape.

"Do you think you are the spokesperson for the Great Dao?" Dao Nian walked to the edge of the star array, extended his white hand, and mercilessly grabbed the remnant of the Great Dao by the neck. "If you were truly the heavenly Dao, how could you be trapped by a mere star array?"

The remnant of the Great Dao stared wide-eyed at the Heavenly Dao before him. If it had been the Heavenly Dao of old, it wouldn't have said so many sarcastic things after capturing him. Where did this ability to win arguments with words come from?

Dao Nian was about to say more when a golden orb of light flew in from the void. This orb, imbued with merit, represented a sincere blessing recognized by heaven and earth, a blessing whose future would become reality.

He extended his empty hand and grasped the orb of merit in his palm.

"From now on, Dao Nian will be able to live freely, healthily, and happily. No one can stop him."

No wonder this orb flew towards him, it was a blessing meant for him.

It was a blessing Chang'an had given him with his own mouth.

"Chang'an…"

He looked at the orb with immense affection, gently lifted it, and carefully tucked it into his chest.

To his surprise, the restriction placed on him by the Great Dao since the day he was born was showing signs of cracking.

He suddenly understood why the remnant of the Great Dao was so enraged. But at this moment, he couldn't be happy about the loosening of the restriction on him. Instead, his expression turned grim as he looked down at the earth below, "You just struck Chang'an?"

The remnant of the Great Dao, with its neck held, could only hiss out a laugh, like a snake crawling out of the darkness. Dao Nian tightened his grip, brutally twisting the remnant's neck.

His head and body were separated, the remnant of the Great Dao lay on the ground, its already blurry form slowly fading. He watched Dao Nian's hurried figure leave, his head opened its mouth wide, and he let out a hoarse laugh.

"We mutually restrain each other, north and south, that is your ultimate destiny. Do you think that by destroying me, the Great Dao cannot be reborn?"

Dao Nian ignored him, waved his hand, and completely obliterated the remnant of the Great Dao.

***

As soon as the remnant of the Great Dao disappeared, the poplar tree yao felt the powerful pressure around him vanish, and the barrier that had been holding him back also disappeared. He scrambled to the edge of the deep pit, looking at Shen Chang'an, who was covered in dirt and unconscious, and wanted to jump down to pull him up.

"Get out of the way."

A gust of wind swept past him, before he could recover, he saw the Heavenly Dao Lord, standing high above, wearing a holy immortal robe, standing in the mud pit, bending down carefully to embrace Chang'an in his arms, gently brushing away the dirt on his face.

It was a simple action, but the poplar tree yao felt as if something was blocking his throat, making him unable to speak.

"I received your blessing." Dao Nian's fingertips trembled slightly, he wiped Shen Chang'an's icy cheek, and poured a bottle of emerald green spiritual liquid into Shen Chang'an's mouth.

As soon as the spiritual liquid entered his mouth, Shen Chang'an's face, which had been as pale as paper, slowly regained its rosy color. Dao Nian held Shen Chang'an in his arms and flew out of the pit, lightly stomped his foot, and the courtyard returned to its original state.

"Heavenly Dao Lord..." The poplar tree yao slowly realized that the thunderbolts tonight were not sent down by the Heavenly Dao, but by something else.

"Tonight, Chang'an had a nightmare and got sick." Dao Nian stopped and looked at the poplar tree yao, "I'm here to take him home."

Home?

Isn't this Chang'an's home?

The poplar yao trembled, afraid to speak.

Dao Nian had no intention of answering his question. He wrapped the feathered robe around Shen Chang'an, turning into a golden light and disappearing into the night.

The poplar yao knelt stiffly in the courtyard. After a long while, he suddenly remembered a question: Heavenly Dao had just carried Chang'an away like that. How would he explain it to the other old men and women tomorrow morning?

He was anxious all night, but the next morning, those old men and women seemed to have forgotten that Chang'an had stayed here last night, not mentioning it at all.

"Chang'an…"

"Didn't Chang'an have something to do last night and rush back?" Grandma Zhao sipped her soy milk. "I know you miss Chang'an, but young people have their own lives, and we old folks have ours. Be a little more carefree."

"Of course," Old Wang agreed. "Life is full of so much joy, you can't just revolve around your children."

Grandpa Yang: "..."

Fine, he didn't say anything.

***

Shen Chang'an felt like he had become a silkworm, enveloped in a soft and comfortable cocoon, being gently rocked in someone's arms. The feeling was so pleasant, so comfortable, that he didn't want to open his eyes.

Something kept flowing into his body, light and airy, as if he were on a cloud.

This feeling was so comfortable, he should let Dao Nian become a silkworm with him, lying in this cocoon.

He didn't know how long he had been unconscious. When Shen Chang'an opened his eyes, he turned his head and saw the white clouds outside. He couldn't help but be stunned. Was he really flying?

"Finally awake?" A glass of juice was handed to him. "We're almost at Wuming City. You sure can sleep."

"Shen Tu?" Shen Chang'an took the juice, only then noticing Dao Nian sitting beside him. He rubbed his temples. "We're... back in Wuming City?" It wasn't that he had flown, they were on a plane.

"The night before last, you had a fever at the courtyard, Old Master Yang called me, so I brought you here." Dao Nian looked down at Shen Chang'an, "You haven't been feeling well these past two days, are you feeling better now?"

"Dao Nian..." Shen Chang'an stared at Dao Nian, his expression a little strange.

"What's wrong?" Dao Nian pulled the blanket covering him, "Hungry? Want to eat something?

Shen Chang'an slowly shook his head, his mind was in a mess: "Dao Nian, are you feeling unwell?"

Dao Nian: "What?"

"Why are you suddenly talking so much?"

That's right, he... seems to have been struck by lightning?!