Volume One: Scroll of Fresh Rain Chapter Thirty-Six: Nothing but the Sword

"I have never understood. Even if one crosses the river, what does it matter? For those on the other shore, what meaning is there in mere existence compared to those on this side?"
Jian Nantian gently brushed aside the emperor's words, shifting the topic lightly.
"To be alive is enough. That is meaning itself. What is so hard to comprehend?" The emperor chuckled softly, still standing with his hands behind his back in the sky, gazing down at this world with an air of leisure, as if admiring a beautiful work of art.
Yet behind him, though the gods stood motionless, the sea of light that invaded this world continued to surge forth without end.
"To be alive is enough—coming from the emperor, that is hard to believe," Jian Nantian said with a smile, his eyes lingering on the expanding light that now claimed a third of the sky, though his demeanor remained relaxed.
"That is spoken under the premise that survival is not guaranteed. If, under that premise, one can live better, even I will strive for it."
"The emperor is a living being, naturally possessing the desires of all life."
"One such desire is possession, especially of what belongs to oneself. I came here today to reclaim what is mine."
The emperor turned his gaze to Ye Mingke, his eyes filled with mirth.
"After all, this child is my creation, my most prized masterpiece. How could I allow it to be lost in the world?"
Ye Mingke was thunderstruck by these words.
What does he mean, I am his creation?
But Uncle Jian once again grasped Ye Mingke's hand, soothing him as he looked coldly at the emperor in the sky.
"What do you mean, you created him? Besides a tragic fate that never should have been his, what else have you given him?"
"To give one a fate is to create them. Everything he possesses now was bestowed by me."
The emperor spoke with calm certainty.
At this moment, the light behind him expanded, taking up half the sky, and surged forth dramatically.
Between heaven and earth, crimson darkness and radiant light formed two equal opposing forces, like titanic beasts poised for a savage clash, weaving countless dividing lines of black and white.
He turned to face Jian Nantian directly, smiling.
"Master of the Sword, you seem unworried."
"If the emperor is not anxious, why should I be?" Jian Nantian replied with a smile, meeting the emperor's gaze.
"When I first entered this realm, my strength was at its weakest. That should have been your only chance to drive me out.
"But now, it seems that opportunity has slipped away."
He stepped forward casually, moving the sea of light with him. The darkness before him retreated with a roar, and the light swelled again, claiming most of this world.
The darkness shrank, barely sheltering the courtyard and the thousand-mile radius where the revived demon army gathered, while the rest of the world was engulfed in blinding light.
Those desiccated, ancient corpses enveloped by the light began to burn silently.
The demon army standing in the darkness watched their comrades' bodies turn to ash with stoic silence, a mute, murderous resolve rising to heaven. This army of corpses and spirits raised their heads slowly under the oppressive light, staring directly at the radiant figure in the sky.
"Or do you believe that anger or morale can change everything, Master of the Sword?"
The emperor finally lowered his gaze to the demon soldiers who dared, in their rage, to look him in the eye, his tone tinged with mockery and curiosity.
"I have never crossed swords with you. I am curious about your thoughts."

Jian Nantian did not look at him, but watched as the corpses of the demon army dissolved into countless points of light within the radiance, his eyes sorrowful.
"Anger may be insignificant in the face of power, but it is the cry of individual life. There is no hierarchy between lives; every act of perseverance deserves respect."
He raised his head and looked up at the emperor, who gazed down at him from the sky.
"Fireflies rushing toward flame may seem futile, but a million fireflies—how hard is it for them to meet the fire? The emperor too is a living being and cannot escape the desire to survive; how dare he look down upon fireflies that perish in pursuit of light?"
"A million fireflies may reach the flame, but today I am curious whether your million fireflies can extinguish the blazing sun of the heavens?"
The emperor advanced with a sweep of light, the radiance overwhelming and fierce, crashing against the last barrier that sheltered the demon army.
He stood hands behind his back in the heights, coldly observing the broken army below, as the light behind him converged like a massive rising sun.
"Form the array!"
From the despairing darkness below came a giant figure, roaring at the sky with thunderous command.
"Form the array!"
The demon mist surged and roared, covering the army and pressing forward against the oncoming light. The two forces collided with ferocity.
Within the darkness, demon soldiers—perhaps no longer conscious—were awakened by the mist, their decaying armor trembling as they moved into scattered positions.
In an instant, a million figures moved together, footsteps resounding like a thousand rolling thunderclaps.
The demon army stood silent and orderly, forming a complex and mysterious battle formation.
Within the demon mist, a giant figure sounded a mournful horn, its call echoing through heaven and earth, deep and sonorous.
Each demon soldier who heard the horn was suffused with layers of mist, opening hollow, dry eyes and gripping broken blades, as if reborn.
"Countless years of war, homeland destroyed, clan annihilated, banners fallen!"
"We soldiers have no face to return home as spirits!"
"Demon army, today we meet death, shattering ourselves for our kin, for a sliver of light!"
A rugged, desolate voice echoed within the surging mist.
"Shatter!"
Countless roars reverberated in the black mist, thicker darkness pouring from each soldier, resisting the invasion of light.
Yet as the mist flowed, the smaller demon soldiers dissolved directly into the mist, and even the giant figures faded visibly.
"Demon dissolution? You managed to use it as a turtle formation? That is unexpected,"
Seeing the fierce light truly dissolve against the demon mist, the emperor was momentarily surprised by the million-strong army below.
"A Celestial Diviner can calculate the trajectory of all beings under the heavenly way, but this world is outside the heavenly way, so your divination is useless here."
Jian Nantian looked up at him, his tone measured and unhurried.
"You waited for time, hoping your true self would enter from outside. But you too are waiting for something. What is it?" The emperor frowned for the first time, sensing things might be slipping beyond his calculations.
Though for him, there were few things in this world needing calculation, and this battle, supposedly without suspense, should not require his concern.
"What am I waiting for? There are many things, but the most important, like you, is that I am waiting for you to enter."

Jian Nantian smiled lightly.
"If you don't enter, how can I trap you here?"
"Trap me? In all these millennia, you are the first to boast of limiting me. I am quite curious—how do you intend to keep me here?"
The emperor was not anxious; instead, he smiled mockingly, coldly regarding the man in the wheelchair, one-armed, legs paralyzed, temples graying.
"A commoner against the emperor—naturally, only the sword will do!"
Jian Nantian's brows, thin and straight as blades, stood upright like swords about to be drawn.
"To seal the supreme with the sword—the sword is the foremost of all weapons, and the swordway is the path of slaughter. Some have called you the strongest killer of the supreme realm!"
The emperor regarded the cripple below with curiosity and amusement.
"But sadly, after me, the supreme is no longer supreme, merely a master, for above the supreme realm lies the imperial realm."
"The strongest in the master realm is still only a master; without entering the imperial realm, what use is it?"
"That is why I said I am waiting for many things, not just you."
Jian Nantian spoke calmly.
"Perhaps six years ago you sensed something. Six years ago, the heavens discovered this place, and the formation that once shielded it was called the Six Wilderness Heaven Array."
"The Six Wilderness refers to the six realms: immortals, demons, buddhas, ghosts, mortals, and magic. This array carries this world like a ferry traversing the six realms, avoiding discovery by the heavens."
The emperor listened with interest, unhurried as Jian Nantian recounted at a measured pace.
"But as you said, the cost to run this world is great, and the support from the heavens and the demon realm is insufficient. Especially after activating the Six Wilderness Array, the duration is limited to six years."
"With the six-year deadline reached, the ferry's protection is failing, and it can no longer wander—it must choose a shore. Can you guess where it will land?"
Jian Nantian gazed up at the emperor, his words haunting.
"The mortal realm?"
"Yes. I want to see if the contract of the Human Sovereign, which imprints upon the mortal world, can challenge an existence above the supreme." Jian Nantian replied.
"Within the mortal realm, the Human Sovereign contract cannot be entirely avoided, even for me. But if I am forced down to the master realm, do you truly believe you can keep me here? Especially while protecting that child?"
"The emperor's cultivation is said to be flawless. Even my swordway cannot find a seam in your defense. But you are now within this world."
"As an imperial being forced into such a small and low realm, it is far too cramped and unstable for you. You may have no flaws, but the world you stand in does."
"As long as there is a single flaw, my sword can cleave it. Moreover, I only need to hold you for three quarters of an hour—the final three!"
"After those three, this world will fall into the mortal realm, and the child will escape there as well. Finding him again will not be so easy."
"After all, like this world, he is untouched by fate, beyond the heavenly secrets."

P.S. This chapter was written hastily and will be revised later.