Chapter 41 Departure
Dongfang Jingyun left the village and continued his journey through the Blood Iron Wasteland, a land filled with suffering.
His steps were firm and steady, as if nothing could stop him from moving forward.
He wants to use his own feet to measure every corner of this land, he wants to use his own eyes to see all kinds of suffering in this world, and he wants to use his own hands to heal every wound in this world.
He is a sufferer, a redeemer of all beings, and a saint walking among men.
Dongfang Jingyun's reputation quickly spread throughout the Blood Iron Wasteland.
More and more people learned of his existence, and they came from all directions to ask Dongfang Jingyun for help.
Some were seriously ill patients, some were abused slaves, some were orphans who had lost their loved ones, and some were refugees whose homes had been destroyed by war...
Each of them carries a heavy burden of suffering and longs for redemption.
Dongfang Jingyun, however, welcomes all who come.
He used his abilities to absorb everyone's pain, giving them a new life.
He himself, however, endured more and more suffering, and his body became increasingly weak.
Finally, in the year 2450 of the Genesis Calendar, on an unusually cold winter day, Dongfang Jingyun arrived at the castle of the Blood Iron Baron, the ruler of the Blood Iron Wasteland.
The castle was built from countless iron blocks and ores, and its outer walls were covered with dried bloodstains, giving off a nauseating bloody smell.
The interior of the castle was also a gloomy and terrifying scene.
In the dimly lit corridor, various instruments of torture hung, stained with blood and bits of flesh.
Every now and then, a series of shrill screams could be heard coming from one of the rooms, sending chills down one's spine.
It is the power center of the entire Blood Iron Wasteland, and also the source of all evil.
Inside the castle, Baron Bloodsteel sat on his iron throne, listening to his subordinates' reports.
"Reporting, Your Excellency, that fellow named Dongfang Jingyun has arrived outside the castle," a soldier reported. "He has killed many of our soldiers and released those lowly commoners!"
"Oh? Interesting." Upon hearing this, Baron Blood Iron's eyes flashed with a hint of interest. "He dares to challenge my authority all by himself? He's really overestimating himself."
"Pass on my order: send out the Rusty Armored Regiment and bring that guy back to me! I'll teach him a lesson he won't forget!"
"Yes, Your Excellency!"
The soldiers obeyed and left. Soon, the castle gates opened, and an army clad in rust-red armor filed out of the castle.
They are the most elite troops under the command of the Blood Iron Baron – the Rusty Armor Legion.
These soldiers were all battle-hardened elites, ruthless executioners, and loyal lackeys of the Blood Iron Baron.
Armed with various weapons, they charged toward Dongfang Jingyun with murderous intent.
Facing the charge of the Rust Armored Corps, Dongfang Jingyun showed no fear. In an instant, he was slashed and fell, blood gushing out, but his face remained calm. Only the soldiers of the Rust Armored Corps suddenly felt waves of intense pain, as if something was tearing their souls apart.
They howled in agony, threw down their weapons, collapsed to the ground, and died instantly.
"What happened?"
Upon seeing this, Baron Blood Iron was furious.
"You bunch of useless trash! Get up! Kill him! Kill him!"
No one responded.
Baron Blood Iron said angrily, "Damn it, I still have to do it myself."
The baron stepped down from the throne made of iron blocks and bones and came before Dongfang Jingyun. This man was tall and strong, wearing an armor made of iron plates and animal hides. He was playing with an iron ball in his hand and wearing a ferocious iron helmet, revealing only a pair of cold eyes.
"Someone, summon the Iron Demon."
At the command of the Blood Iron Baron, several priests dressed in black robes stepped forward and began the summoning ritual.
They gathered around a huge iron altar and began chanting ancient and eerie incantations.
As the incantation was chanted, the iron blocks on the altar began to make a "crackling" sound, as if something was trying to break free from them.
Immediately afterwards, a plume of black smoke rose from the altar, condensing in the air into hideous and terrifying evil spirits.
These evil spirits, some resembling humans, some beasts, and some insects, varied in form, but all exuded an evil and terrifying aura.
They hovered and roared in the air, as if they wanted to tear everything to shreds.
"Go, my servants, release your pain!"
Baron Blood Iron pointed at Dongfang Jingyun and gave orders to the Iron Evil Spirits.
Upon hearing the Blood Iron Baron's command, the Iron Specters immediately pounced on Dongfang Jingyun.
They bared their teeth and claws, emitting piercing screams, trying to tear Dongfang Jingyun to pieces.
However, Dongfang Jingyun neither dodged nor resisted.
He simply stood there quietly, letting the iron spirits surround him.
Streams of black energy surged from the Iron Evil Spirit and converged into Dongfang Jingyun's body.
Dongfang Jingyun's body began to tremble violently, and a look of pain appeared on his face, but his eyes remained firm.
As the pain intensified, Dongfang Jingyun's body began to undergo strange changes.
Rust began to grow on his skin, his muscles began to atrophy, his bones began to deform, and his internal organs began to rot.
He was becoming more and more like a decaying, rusty, and falling-down steel puppet.
After transferring their pain to Dongfang Jingyun, those iron-evil spirits gradually calmed down.
Their bodies began to become transparent, eventually turning into wisps of blue smoke and dissipating into the air.
From beginning to end, Dongfang Jingyun did not utter a single word.
Faced with such a formidable figure, Baron Blood Iron remained silent for a moment before saying, "Do you know? I don't actually enjoy killing. Everything I do is simply to maintain order in this world."
"This land is so barren and so cruel that without iron-fisted rule, without strict laws, and without the deterrent effect of fear, the people here simply cannot survive."
"And you, well, I admire you for being a tough guy. Maybe you can beat me today, but remember, you can never beat the world."
"Because what you are fighting against is not just me, but the rules of this world, and human nature itself."
"Wherever there are people, there will be exploitation, oppression, and suffering; this is unchangeable."
"You want to save them? What makes you think you can save them? What will you use to save them?"
"You will eventually find that everything you have done has been in vain."
Faced with Baron Blood Iron's words, Dongfang Jingyun finally spoke.
This was the first time he had spoken since arriving at the castle.
"It doesn't matter."
Dongfang Jingyun said calmly:
"I came here not to save anyone, nor to change anything."
"These pains are expressed, revealed, and explained through my body, nothing more. My wounds are merely tools to make those silent, dead people speak again."
"If one day, there is no more oppression, no more exploitation, no more pain in this world, then I will simply vanish. After suffering so many wounds, I should have turned to ashes long ago."
"But in essence, I'm not really afraid of this outcome."
After saying that, Dongfang Jingyun glanced at the Baron.
A faint but incredibly persistent pain emanated from Dongfang Jingyun's body and surged into the Blood Iron Baron's body.
This pain was so faint to Dongfang Jingyun that he could hardly feel its presence.
But even this slight pain caused the Blood Iron Baron's expression to change drastically.
He screamed madly and uncontrollably, his muscles began to atrophy, his bones began to deform, his internal organs began to rot, and patches of rust began to grow on his skin.
He was aging and decaying rapidly, like an iron man eroded by the years.
"No... Ah... Ahhh!!!"
The Blood Iron Baron let out a painful roar before his body completely disintegrated, turning into a pile of rusty iron blocks scattered on the ground.
After the death of the Blood Iron Baron, the people of this land finally gained their long-awaited freedom.
They cheered, celebrated, and thanked Dongfang Jingyun for his sacrifice and dedication.
The miners also began to discuss their future.
"Now, we are finally free from the oppression of the Blood Iron Baron!"
"Yes, the wealth from mining should be distributed among everyone in the future!"
"We need to establish new rules and abolish the old rules of the Blood Iron Baron!"
Who wants to start?
"I'll go first, but I can't get frostbite!"
"That's right, we need to buy more safety equipment. We can't let this tragedy happen again!"
"Write all of this down: buy safety equipment, and don't get frostbite."
Dongfang Jingyun listened to their conversation from the side, tilted his head to look at them for a while, and then left alone.