As the last of Wei Xin's body flaked away into oblivion, Liang Chen's gaze turned towards the sky, and the clouds that covered it. His red rain had already faded as the battle came to an end, but a small shower of normal rain was still falling, probably a result of the residual Qi that still lingered from the battle. The drops that fell on his face were warmer than normal rain, thin and small drops somewhat akin to needles.
"…"
It rained a lot when he fought. Of course, he was the source of it, oftentimes even calling out the rain so that he could siphon it to refill his own dwindling reserves of Qi during longer battles. As a result, he often found himself like this, standing alone amidst the last few falling drops in the aftermath of everything.
"…"
Honestly, if you asked him, he wouldn't be able to answer whether he liked the rain or not. On the one hand, it felt as if the sky was grieving for what had happened, as if the heavens he knew were dead had regained a semblance of life and grieved the state of the world. And on the other hand, it washed away everything. A cold wave that washed away all that was and remained, a rhythmic drumming sound that blotted out everything else. Just as it did now, slowly but surely wiping away whatever faint traces remained of Wei Xin and her men. All that was ever left behind was him.
"I cannot choose a side."
As all that was left was him, his voice echoed throughout the torn ravine. The one he spoke to had already faded into oblivion, even her true body back in her own Sphere of Existence ceased to exist. That was the terror of the Void. The invaders relied heavily on the fact that what they sent here were only avatars made by their lord, their true bodies remained safe should a final push be needed. But the Void cared not. The Void asked not. The Void only swallowed, no matter where they were.
When his gaze lowered from the weeping skies, Liang Chen's golden pupils were as steadfast as always. A war for existence, a war for the right to live. Either side had to die for the other side to be safe. But Liang Chen could not choose a side. Liang Chen would not choose a side. The heavens were dead, but he was not. So those that could not be punished by the fabled heavenly wrath would be punished by him.
"…No matter the side."
A mutter escaped him, an almost indiscernible twitch of his lips. That was the fate he had chosen, that was the path he stepped on after watching his parents kneel atop the scaffolding as a child. He made the choice. He would bear the cost, the inevitable stigma.
Perhaps Wei Xin spoke at the end in hopes of shaking Liang Chen's determination, perhaps it was only to unnerve him as a final act of revenge. Or perhaps she was, as the loser, just giving earnest advice to the victor that would outlive her. The one who could answer that question was now gone, unable to even be reborn. But whatever the answer was, it mattered not. Because for Liang Chen, the answer had always been apparent, understood and accepted.
So be it. Let me be the hated, let me be the evil. Life is easier when there is someone to hate and fear, morals are easier to align.
Huff
A heavy breath escaped Liang Chen, his eyes blinking a few times. He was… Tired. And not just from ending another swathe of lives. First he had dueled with Ren Xiao Ping, and then he had come right here and fought three Sovereign Gods and about half of their Division. He had minimized the damage to himself and large attacks he had to launch by scheming and directing the flow of the battle, but he wasn't omnipotent. He would get tired, he would get drained. Both physically and mentally.
So right now… He wanted to rest. He knew what was to come. He knew how hectic and chaotic the future would become before long. So right now… He just wanted to get some rest.
For a brief moment, he closes his eyes and listened to the last few patters of rain falling from the sky. The world was silent save for those few lonely drops, the earth was still and all was calm. The battle was over, both here and over on Yan Ling's side. They did not come rushing to him, she did not come teleporting in to back him up.
She trusted him, she believed in him. And she did not want to burden him by jumping into the fight, it would just end with both of them diverting a portion of their attention to the other so that they could aid them should it be needed. And in a fight on their level, that little lapse of attention could oftentimes be all it took to end one. Thus, she did not come rushing to his side despite finishing her fight. Because she trusted him. Because she believed in him.
He stood here alone amidst the dying rain, but it did not mean that he was alone.
"Let's go home."
Another mutter slipped from him as he opened his eyes again. Another little habit he was starting to develop after the myriad of battles he was constantly engaging in, the numerous bouts to the death. His voice blocked out the silence, added a touch of life to the emptiness that was left in the wake. Or perhaps he just wanted to hear something, anything.
He swept his finger across the ring he wore, finally returning the spearhead he had been gifted to his interspatial ring. It had truly been a mighty weapon, a wonderful conduit for his Qi and laws, as one would expect from an item made using parts of an Origin Beast. But that mighty specialness would make it difficult to find a shaft that could properly handle it. It was fine in this fight, but if he had to constantly replace the shaft in future fights then it would only present his opponents with an opportunity to attack him. So sooner rather than later he would have to find something, most probably another part from an Origin Beast's body.
———————
The path back to the city was long yet short. He couldn't traverse through space like Yan Ling so he had to get back on his own two feet. But after walking for a bit and restoring a smidge of Qi, he could launch bolts of lightning and ride them forward to drastically cut down on the time. So, it was a long path, but it passed quickly, and once again he was greeted by the sight of the city beneath him.
Observing the city from his vantage point, he could detect a few places that showed signs of damage, attacks that had strayed from their path or defenses that had failed to hold up. But on the whole, the city was doing just fine, all the damage was limited to the furthest outskirts. And most importantly, he could not hear the weeping or mournful howls. He heard thankful cheers and sighs of relief, but no sorrow. There was a smidge of damage on the outskirts, but the people of the city were alive and would get to see the sun rise another day.
Liang Chen arrived at the palace they had been in when the attack started, the building that had suffered the most damage thanks to the initial attack that Xiao Ping had to block using the defensive array that covered the planet. The entire top had vanished in the defensive maneuver of Xiao Ping so all Liang Chen had to do was descend from the sky.
"Little Freak!"
The first thing that greeted him was that title, that name someone had stuck onto him in the past. That endearing title that only a single person would dare to call him. Yan Ling was at his side before his feet even touched the floor. Her cyan hair was rather disheveled, the usual braid had come undone so her hair was hanging freely, a few strands sticking to what seemed to be clumps of blood. Her sapphire eyes had darkened somewhat with weariness, but the light of concern shone in them freely as she scoured Liang Chen's body with her gaze.
She trusted and believed in him, but that did not mean that you didn't worry about them. Liang Chen was no better himself, he trusted and believed in her strength, but he still swept every inch of her body with his senses to make sure that there were no wounds after her fight with the two Sovereign Gods. She had a couple of marks that showed she had been struck, but they were healing rapidly thanks to her bloodline so there wouldn't even be any scars left before long.
Once he was done making sure that she didn't have any wounds, his arms opened wide and wrapped around her, pulling her tightly into his embrace. His head came to rest atop her head, her slightly damp hair sticking to his face. But he cared not, breathing in deeply as he closed his eyes. She was warm in his embrace, she ran at a slightly higher temperature than him, the subtle difference evident beneath his fingers. There was a faint bit of blood mixed in with her smell, but it was overshadowed by the familiar scent that tickled his nose.
Their reunion wasn't exactly recent, but just the fact that they were together again was enough to make each day feel like it was the first one all over again. He hadn't thought about it at the time, he hadn't even realized it at the time. But the more time he spent with her after their reunion, the more he realized it. He… Had been lonely. In his foray into Purgatory's Cradle, in the time they had been apart before then, in the time their journeys had taken them to different places. He had been lonely. He had Yumao at his side, he had picked up Sheng Lian, he had picked up Ao Fentian, he had the various people scurried away in his interspatial ring.
But when he hugged her like this. Whenever he took in her scent that reminded him of home. Whenever his fingers brushed against her slightly warm skin. Whenever she tilted her head slightly to look back at him and gave him that ever-so-slightly tilted smile. Whenever he turned in his sleep and felt her arms wrap around him a little bit tighter. He had been lonely, he just hadn't known it at the time, drowned it out with everything else.
So, when he got the chance like this, he breathed in deeply. He engraved the warmth on the tip of his fingers, he emblazoned the scent upon his heart. He took it all in as much as he could. So that it would never leave him again.
"Father, if you want us to give you some space to get busy then you have to give us the chance to slip away, otherwise you'll be teaching the youngin something bad."
Of course, Liang Chen allowing himself a moment to get lost in Yan Ling didn't mean that the others would give him that same moment, as was evident from the almost snickering voice that flowed out from just behind Yan Ling.
"Paparan, can we look now?"
The second voice that followed was far more innocent and endearing, he was a lot more accepting of this voice interrupting his moment of reverie.
He finally opened his eyes and raised his head slightly, only resting his chin on top of Yan Ling's head as he turned his gaze slightly downward. There, standing a step or two behind Yan Ling, was little Lan Yun, her snow-white hair neat and tidy, tied into a single braid that copied her mother's usual style. Her head was tilted slightly so her lovely sky-blue eyes were probably looking up at Liang Chen. Now, the problem laid in the rascal curled up on top of her head.
Yumao had nestled himself into her white hair, forming a stark contrast to his black feathers and scales, as well as the grey veins that ran down his body. He had extended his tail slightly and was using it to cover Lan Yun's eyes, as if he was shielding her from seeing something awful.
"Forgive me father, I could not stop him."
A somewhat apologetic voice came from a bit behind Lan Yun, Sheng Lian hurrying over with small steps. Looking to be barely in her late teens, she had short black hair that barely reached her ears and striking violet pupils. She was holding the infant Ao Fentian, his tufts of black hair combed neatly and his green eyes sparkling slightly as he looked around. The four of them looked pristine, untouched by the battle that had taken place here.
Of course, Liang Chen elected to ignore the hidden marks on Yumao's scales and the traces of blood that still stuck to some of his feathers, that one was too rowdy to not join a fight like this one.
Resting his head on Yan Ling, Liang Chen looked at the four people who looked at him with differing gazes. He wanted to laugh while looking at them, he felt it bubble up in him. Looking at them now, he just found it a bit funny.
Little Yumao, who called him father. Hatched from an egg all those years ago yet still stuck in his winged-serpent form, oftentimes favoring this small variant rather than his large true size. Lan Yun, who had similarly hatched from an egg, but in human form, and had grown extremely slowly over the years. Sheng Lian, who had once been an Elemental Lotus grown on Liang Chen's spilled blood and was then given a rapid burst of growth, resulting in this teen-like human form despite being basically just an infant. And then, there was the actual infant, Ao Fentian, just a normal person.
Except for Ao Fentian who couldn't talk yet, all of them called him a variation of father, their sizes and ages all over the place. They did not have a proper father and child relationship so there was no need for them to address him as such. But they called him father all the same. And he… He thought of them as his children, they deserved that much.
War was coming. Wei Xin wasn't wrong when she said that. It was already starting, larger and larger battles undoubtedly breaking out all over the place. It would only get worse from here, and he would undoubtedly jump right into the fray, into the depth of that hell where humanity was washed away in favor of turning people into weapons. But these people… He would not let anything happen to his family.
The corners of his lips curved up as he looked at the four of them, as he felt the heat coming form the arms that were wrapped around his waist. His head moved slightly, his cheek now resting on Yan Ling's head as he slowly opened his mouth to talk, the coldness of the rain from earlier all but washed away.
"You've ruined my lovely Yumao. He used to be such a good kid, and you've ruined him with that mouth of yours."
There was no loving remark, no grand proclamation or assuring words, just a snide remark mimicking a grieving man. Sadly, the one he directed the remark towards was the one who had taught him almost everything he knew about sarcasm and the like.
"Pft. You're the one who's been around him the most, so don't you go blaming this on me. He just takes after his father."
Yan Ling's face was still buried in Liang Chen's chest as she spoke, her voice sending small vibrations through his chest and up to his head. Comforting, it was all so comforting. So of course, he responded as the two of them always did with each other.
"Slander, nothing but slander I tell you."
Liang Chen's chest reverberated with Yan Ling's response, a low chuckle. The vibrations merged with the subdued beating of his heart, forming a simple symphony that echoed throughout his entire body. His gaze slowly rose, landing on Ren Xiao Ping, Ren Shuren, Ren Yazhu, and Ren Shuya, who stood a bit away. Ren Xiao Ping was still heavily wounded from blocking the initial attack, but the others only had some smaller wounds, it truly had been unfortunate for Wei Xin and her men to end up here, where they were so outclassed.
Ren Yazhu and Ren Shuren were looking at Liang Chen and his family with a soft and gentle expression. They were his biological parents, and although he had made it clear that he could not consider them as his actual parents, that honor would forever be with the people who chose to die for his sake, they were happy just seeing their first child living his life well. They had been forced to send him through time to protect his life and had never expected to see him again, knowing that he was living well was enough for them, getting to grow closer to him was just a magnificent bonus.
Ren Shuya also had a gentle expression, but it was mainly directed towards his parents. He was technically Liang Chen's brother, but the two had only met twice so what sort of relationship could they have? He was just happy that his parents were happy. It was for his parents that he had done his best to ensure that Liang Chen would come here. Well, for his parents and for his race, he believed that Liang Chen was someone necessary for the Sebettu to have a proper future once more.
And finally, there was the one who Liang Chen's gaze landed on. Ren Xiao Ping, technically his sister, and the future leader of the Sebettu, the race that Liang Chen's bloodline once originated from. Her skin and flesh had burned and flaked away, you could still see blackened bones in several places as she was doing her best to recover.
Her's was the most complex gaze.
She had never hidden her opinion, she detested the fact that Liang Chen could not accept his biological parents. And because he could not accept his parents and race, she did not want for him to be here, she did not wish for their race to rely on someone who cared not one whit for them. She had even threatened him to leave, engaging him in a duel to get him to leave them alone.
She had lost that duel, and then they had been attacked shortly after.
Well, to be correct, it was Liang Chen who had been attacked. That initial attack, designed to destroy planets before they can fight back, had gone straight for Liang Chen because they both contained the Void within them. And Xiao Ping had blocked that attack with her own body. She had been drained after the fight with Liang Chen, but she had jumped right in front of him to block it.
Because the Sebettu would not allow a guest of theirs to die on their land. Because their parents would be sad if Liang Chen were to die, even if he did not accept them as his family.
She despised him, but she had protected him. She had then tried to drag her mangled body into the fight while allowing Liang Chen and Yan Ling to leave, because an attack on the Sebettu had no relation to them so they had no reason to fight. But she had to fight, no matter how wounded. Because she was a Sebettu, and she would lead them in the future, and she would not let her people die while she still drew breath.
And then, no matter how much it tarnished and hurt her pride, she had lowered her head to Liang Chen. Because she could not fulfill her duty as the future leader, because she could not protect her people. So she had lowered her head, even to the man she despised.
The two locked eyes, dark grey eyes that bordered on black meeting his gleaming gold. She had despised him from the moment he rejected their parents and their race. But… Liang Chen could not bring himself to despise her.
Kneeling and tied up a bit away from them were five people, the five people Liang Chen had pointed out and marked as innocent, not allowed to be killed. Ren Xiao Ping had advocated for killing them when Liang Chen first said to spare them, but there they were, tied up and alive. She was brash and straightforward, but her heart was good, so he could not hate her. Thus, he looked straight at her.
"As you asked, I have protected your people."
Xiao Ping's face twisted slightly as Liang Chen spoke. It looked as if she was grimacing in discomfort and annoyance. But Liang Chen could see it, the wetness in her eyes, the shining light on her soul. She forced her battered and broken body into a proper sitting position and placed her fists on what remained of her thighs, using them as support to lower her torso and head as her choked up voice slipped out.
"Thank you… Thank you, Liang Chen… Thank you for not letting them lose more."