The Path Toward Heaven

People, be it the philosophers or some kind of specialists, have to go back to their respective homes and mothers after finishing their daily work.

Though not everyone had a living mother, they must have a home of some sort to go to, like the mansion of the priest clan, a temporary residence.

The whistling and floating train left the station and brought some air in the tunnel with it. Then, they breathed the fresh air full of the scent of wild grass, which was actually a gust of wind.

Jing Jiu and Ran Handong came back to the small building. The main preacher and the others rushed over like a waft of wind, in an attempt to ask questions. But they were stopped by Ran Handong.

“The Special District of Capital City is under martial law. The Fleet has issued a level three warning. The people are rushing over from the praying hall.”

Zong Lizi vaguely guessed something had happened. “What has happened?” she asked Jing Jiu.

“I was bored, and took a walk.”

Jing Jiu lay on the bamboo chair and started taking a rest with his eyes closed.

It’s true that people prefer going out and taking a walk along the rivers and in the parks when they feel bored.

However, Capital City was under martial law and the alarms blared throughout the planet after Jing Jiu led Ran Handong taking a walk. Where had they been?

Zong Lizi could tell that Jing Jiu was really tired even though she had many questions to ask. She poured the tea into a cup from the iron kettle, put it on the tea table beside the chair gingerly, and headed toward the outside of the room.

“You look good…to wear the glasses,” she suddenly commented before walking out of the door.

The door of the room closed slowly behind her, without making any noise. Jing Jiu opened his eyes and picked up the teacup to have a sip. Without taking off the glasses, Jing Jiu turned on the TV set.

As Zong Lizi came to the room outside, Jiang Yuxia, and Hua Xi approached her and asked, “What has happened?”

Zong Lizi shook her head slightly, then looked at Ran Handong who propped herself against the wall in a stupor.

Ran Handong turned around, walked into the living room, and sat on a chair.

It wasn’t until now that she had truly calmed down.

Calmness means getting in touch with reality. She tried her hardest not to think about those horrific events.

Thinking of the scenes in the building of the military headquarters made her tremble from head to feet slightly and uncontrollably.

Zong Lizi and the others felt startled when they witnessed this.

“Big sister, are you okay?” asked Hua Xi worriedly.

Ran Handong waved her hand a few times, taking out a cigarette with her trembling fingers and ignited it; she sucked on it twice.

The smoke entered her body, giving her a faint sensation of pain and warmth. Her mood had improved slightly, but it was far from where she wanted it to be.

It would be better if she could have a drink of strong spirits, she thought.

Her distress stemmed from the madness of Shen Yunmai, and more importantly, from Jing Jiu’s performance

It was at that moment that she thought Jing Jiu would kill Shen Yunmai, like he had done to the battleship in the Yinhai Nebula.

If Shen Yunmai were dead, how many people would die with him?

It could be the whole Federation of the Milky Way.

…

…

The words “urgent news” appeared on TV screens in countless households.

Soon enough, the whole of the planet had learned that something significant had happened in the Special District of Capital City that day.

The building of the military headquarters was under attack from the yielding faction. Those believers of the dark force attacked it like madmen with the help of powerful weapons.

The military had wiped out all the terrorists in a short time, and yet the building of the military headquarters sustained a great deal of damage. Fortunately, none of the brave soldiers and personnel had suffered casualties in the terrorist attack, according to the news, save for a dozen people being injured by the broken metal pieces from the explosions.

Jing Jiu knew that those people were the worshippers of the Sea of Dark Matter and believed that the Federation of the Milky Way should give up on their resistance and accept the invasion of the dark force and become a part of the eternity.

Though he understood why those people had such an idea, he wouldn’t accept it. As such, he had a high opinion of how quickly the government reacted and what they had done so far.

Jing Jiu pulled back his line of sight and picked up the teacup to have another sip before he closed his eyes to rest again.

Though he didn’t use too much fairy energy in the fight, it consumed some of his mental energy nonetheless.

He had a high opinion of Shen Yunmai, which was tantamount to spotting an almost perfect pearl or a pure diamond.

However, this appreciation wouldn’t change his attitude toward him.

The pearls dangling under the earlobe were annoying, and the diamond’s sharp corners could hurt someone’s feet. So, what should he do then?

What he should do was of course tear it off or throw it away. If the other party didn’t yield, that person should be crushed to powders.

It was similar to the principle of killing with a swing of the sword.

But why didn’t he kill Shen Yunmai?

It was because many people would die, like those on the Scorching-Sun Battleship and in the Mingshen Neighborhood, if he did.

It was also because Shen Yunmai was not so easy to kill. His bones that had been tempered with fairy energy were reinforced with all sorts of alloy, none of which were weaker than Jing Jiu’s. To break through his defense completely, Jing Jiu had to wield at least three thousand swords, giving the military of the Federation of the Milky Way enough time to set up the shield with a large gravitational field; after that…a barrage of fireworks would take place inside it.

Jing Jiu was unwilling to accept the fact that he would die together with his opponent; in fact, he was unwilling to take even the slightest risk.

There must be a behind-the-scenes figure supporting Shen Yunmai. That person was the true source of trouble for him if one were taking that person’s generation, relationship to him, morality, and ability into consideration.

He had hidden in the underground neighborhood on the Stargate until he found the Snow Girl and went to the Main Planet. It was because he was aware that this world had a weapon or a person posing a threat to him. He didn’t intend to deal with those people too early even though General Li said during their conversation that they had no intention to kill him, which was also consistent with his own calculations.

But they were merely probability; he was the only one who knew the truth.

It was then that a quarrel broke out below, indicating new trouble.

…

…

A few main preachers of the praying hall and General Ran came.

This General Ran was not Ran Donglou, the vice commander-in-chief, but his son and Ran Handong’s eldest brother.

General Ran had a grim expression on his face, and the faces of the few main preachers looked terrible. “Did he know what he was doing?” they asked the Main Preacher Tai Yang.

The Main Preacher Tai Yang had been serving Jing Jiu the entire time of the journey and regarded him as a god. He couldn’t allow the others to disrespect him. “Do you people know what you’re doing?” he retorted icily.

General Ran said while staring at his eyes, “He should stay here to wait for the meeting with that one; but why did he go to the Special District of Capital City?”

“He found it too boring to wait here, so I accompanied him to have paid a visit there.”

Ran Handong came before the railing on the second floor and looked down at the group below.

The nonchalant voice came out from her mouth along with some faint smoke of a cigarette.

Seeing her in such a condition and thinking of the report he had just received, General Ran couldn’t control his emotion any longer. “Nobody can suppress the spread of the news of such a significant incident,” said he coldly. “The whole of the Federation of the Milky Way will know the truth. Did he intend to start a war between the military and the praying hall and have the entire Federation destroyed? I hope he will give a reasonable explanation.”

“He’s tired and needs some rest,” said Ran Handong.

“What kind of a fuss are you intended to make?” General Ran yelled, feeling more enraged.

Ran Handong extinguished the cigarette by pressing it on the wall and said lightly, “Father lets me take care of all the affairs for him. I’m his secretary now.”

General Ran forced himself to have his anger in check, then brought his mouth close to her ear, saying in a low voice, “What he did was to compel us to choose sides!”

It was true that Jing Jiu intended to exert pressure on the government of the Federation and the priest clan, regardless of whether it was the fight in the building of the military headquarters or if it was the plan that he would knock another battleship off the sky.

At such a critical moment, the government and that one must make a decision soon with regard to whether they would side with Jing Jiu.

Ran Handong knew Jing Jiu’s intention, which is why she asked him to give the government more time to consider it when they were in the Special District of Capital City. “What’s wrong with it?” she snapped expressionlessly.

“He is alone no matter how strong he is,” said General Ran, feeling it rather preposterous.

As long as those battleship fleets didn’t return to the interplanetary system, all the planets and populace were under the control of the government in name.

Though there were many conditions attached to it, the government was, in fact, the ruler of this world besides the military.

It was unnecessary to say that the praying hall was also a ruler of this world. As the sole inheritance of the distant ancient civilization, it had countless worshipers.

The government and the praying hall represented one part of the human civilization.

However, one human dared to compel one part of the civilization to express their stance, which was extremely arrogant of him.

Ran Handong gave a simple and clear answer, “Shen Yunmai has almost died today.”

Upon hearing this, General Ran and those main preachers of the praying hall were all stunned speechless, standing rigidly on the spots.

The incident in the building of the military headquarters couldn’t conceal from the entire world, but the details of it were closely guarded. The Ran family didn’t even know them.

Shen Yunmai was an advisor of the highest level at the military headquarters and the most outstanding figure in the Federation of the Milky Way and was one of the most powerful Cultivation practitioners in this world. Yet he was almost killed by that person.

“As you know, I was present when the incident occurred.” Holding the crooked cigarette in her hand, Ran Handong said to her brother, “As a result, I know it’s exactly what he intends to achieve. Now, it’s time for you people, or that one, to state the stance explicitly.”

General Ran still couldn’t accept the fact. “Well…even if what you said is true, what he did is still too risky,” he muttered.

“It’s meaningless to talk about it. What he needs is an answer. When will that one be willing to meet him? I give you people…”

Ran Handong continued after a moment of pause, “Three days. Otherwise, I believe he will go to see that one himself.”

Hearing this, the expressions on the few main preachers’ faces changed slightly, then left the small building in a hurry.

Seeing those figures disappear on the other side of the compound of the mansion, Ran Handong turned to walk back to the room. “You should get an answer pretty soon,” she said to Jing Jiu.

Looking at the light tea in the cup, Jing Jiu said, “You’re right that that it is my intention. However, but three days is too long.”

Recalling that Jing Jiu commented that he would knock down another battleship when they were on the street in the Special District of Capital City, Ran Handong said pale-faced, “Please have more patience and keep cool.”

Jing Jiu snapped, “This isn’t fishing; why should I be patient?”

Ran Handong said after remaining silent for a while, “I’ll boil some tea for you.”