âYour threat is useless.â The teleporting creature responded.
âIâm not threatening you since if I wanted to do so, I would have done it the last time I was here. Iâm just telling you right now since this is my last visit to Buddhist Plain, no need to do so anymore. Thus, I need the answer or I will make it truly disappear from history!â
âI also want to tell you.â The creature shook its head: âUnfortunately, we also donât know the answer since we didnât actually participate. All I can do is apologize, we wonât be able to help.â
Li Qiye raised his brow and said: âSo, you are saying that the one who found this world isnât your group but rather the Golden Buddha that left.â
âYes.â The creature said: âWe only researched the way to face the disaster back then but he had his own ideas. He believed that our method was useless so he tried to look for other ways, including the non-existent world.â
âI see.â Li Qiye replied: âNo wonder why he was able to escape during the destruction of an epoch. Unfortunately, he still couldnât let go of everything, unable to quell his desire.â
âNo one can, not even a Buddha after the long years.â The creature said: âIt is also the same for you, someone who wants to participate in the final battle. Perhaps you are like him, finding a way to help your epoch survive with the non-existent world.â
âNo, I am not a compassionate person. I am trying to find it for my own sake, not for the rest of the world.â Li Qiye shook his head with a smile and added: âYou all do not have what Iâm searching for, it is time for me to leave.â
âYou may leave with an item.â The creature spread its palm, revealing a seed on its furry paw.
When this seed appeared, a Buddhist light illuminated the entire place. It seemed to be gestating three thousand worlds with a majestic life force. Trillions of existences could be born from it. Once it grew up, it would be able to open a new world.
âIf this seed germinates, it will be a brilliant era.â The creature said: âNo one else but you will be able to plant it. You have experienced our epoch and learned the dao here so you can also shoulder an entirely new epoch, opening an unprecedented path.â
âYou should keep something that amazing then.â Li Qiye smiled: âIâm not a naive kid who salivates at the first sight of treasure. This karmic fruit is indeed amazing, gestated by an epoch. Unfortunately, it also carries the karma of an epoch. Even if it could bring about an amazing yield, its karma is also frightening! Severing this karma to start a new age is quite problematic, so go ahead and keep it, let the fateful have it instead.â He stood up after saying this.
âOutside of this seed, perhaps we could give you even more.â The creature said: âAs long as you plant this seed outside, youâll get more from our world. Youâre an exceptional person, you should know that there is no escaping the destruction. Donât you know what you should do during that period?â
Li Qiye couldnât help but smile. He sat down again: âTrying to persuade me? In terms of treasures, to be frank, Iâm not interested in any of them. There are countless in the world, why would I need to be involved in your karma?â
He paused and continued: âAs for the destruction of the world, I have also researched enough epochs, not just yours. Thatâs why I know exactly what will happen and the consequences.â
âYou are a sage with vast knowledge and should know how to save the world. Even though we have failed, we have experienced that power and know it quite well. We can teach it to you.â The creature said.
âNo, you are mistaken again. Iâm no world savior, thinking about how to save everyone. If you are thinking about teaching me about those things, youâre talking to the wrong person.â Li Qiye smiled.
âIf you wonât try to save the world, will you hide in the darkness then?â The creature asked.
Li Qiye shook his head: âThose arenât the only two options. Saving the world has nothing to do with me, I will simply cut down everyone in my path. What below my feet will be a new age, so why bother saving anything else?! Your plan was flawed from the start, thinking about saving the world during the destruction instead of taking down the inevitableness. The high heaven does not have sympathy, no one else does. Doing so will only be burying an opportunity. You might be able to save one era but what about the rest? Only by severing the dao would the world be able to exist forever but of course, this brings up another problem afterward, a real test for your dao hearts.â
âThe reason for a lack of a true savior is because everything is up to the heart of people. In all honesty, both darkness and destruction are due to the nature of beings. Even if you are able to save your world, you wonât be able to change the heart of all.â
The creature was silent. At their level, they were able to see through this clearly. Nevertheless, they still had their own stance about it.
âIn your epoch, the Buddhist light illuminated everything with mercy but it still wasnât enough.â Li Qiye chuckled: âEveryone knows that saving the world canât be done in just one day. The villainous heaven knows this too. Everything is just a cycle; itâs not about you or me or even the heaven. Itâs all in the heart of people.â
âIf you donât want to save the world, why do you try so hard without giving up? With your current makings, it is more than enough to run far away. Why fight to the end?â The creature said slowly.
âI want an answer, thus, I must fight the final battle!.â Li Qiye chuckled.
The creature said: âNo one can answer your question, but perhaps you know this already in your heart, that even the final battle might not give you an answer!â
âNo problem, even if I have an answer already, Iâll still seek another one. If they wonât give me one, then Iâll beat them until I get one.â Li Qiye said with a smile.
âThen what happens after?â The creature asked: âAfter success, like you have said earlier, the world will be beneath your feet. Why would you not save it then?â
âLike I said, the real world is in everyoneâs heart. Saving or not saving it is up to everyone else. Let the heaven and earth be the judge; this particular phrase isnât just a legend, imperceptible it might be, but it has always been there.â Li Qiye smiled mysteriously.
âBecause of this, when people look up at the sky with the descending destruction, they should touch their chest and have a moment of reflection. This intangible judge will always be there, even across the cycles and world destructions.â With that, Li Qiye continued: âYour seed is a Buddhist one to enlighten and save the beings. But if there is no evil, what is there to be enlightened about? You all have done it for many generations but couldnât be completely thorough. Is it because you lack the necessary amount of compassion or is there just too much evil in the world? Or perhaps there is no good or evil in the first place and no need for you to enlighten anyone.â
The creature didnât respond.
âBecause of this, my path will be different from all the other epochs. It doesnât matter if I become a Buddha, a devil, a god, or an immortal. I will only plant the judgment of the heaven and earth in this epoch! In the future, the peopleâs heart will determine the state of the world. As long as the fair judgment is there when I make it to the final battle, I will have accomplished what needs to be done.â
âEveryone has a responsibility for their world since youth. Thatâs why no savior will save them since such salvation is only ephemeral in nature. But with enough solidarity, they just might be able to do so something about it instead of doing something self-indulging like waiting for a savior.â
Li Qiyeâs expression became solemn. He never talked about this with others but the being before him was at the level to truly have a real discussion. Others were only looking at the moon in the water or the reflection of the flower in the mist.â
âThe judgment of the heaven and earth.â The creature murmured.
âThatâs why Iâm not a savior, neither are you.â Li Qiye chuckled: âYou planted Buddhism but it didnât permeate straight to everyoneâs heart. Otherwise, you might have had a chance. As for the other Golden Buddha, even if he could return again, so what? Even if he could participate in the final battle? So what? All futile in the end.â