Chương 341: A Great Injustice
The Dao Clone of Qi lay down on the barren ground, just outside of Elia's temple, where he himself had also spent many years living. He watched as the Primordial Devil descended through the now grey Heavenly Rebirth Formation, entering the Heavenly Path Province and spreading out his domain to also cover this region.
In an instant, every single living being within the province, aside from the Dao Clone of Qi himself, was killed. By now, the Dao Clone of Qi and the Primordial Devil were the only living beings remaining on Planet Yushu. Only a few immortals managed to escape from the Southern Continent, but every other form of life had been laid to waste.
Despite all of this, the Dao Clone of Qi could no longer find it within his heart to care. His desire to protect his homeland, and all that he had once held dear, died.
It died along with Elia. It died along with his failure to live up to his heart of protection.
Elia bled out from the giant hole in her body, but the hole was simply too huge, and before long, her corpse ran dry of blood to shed. The Dao Clone of Qi was now soaked in her blood, whilst he lay atop her dismembered and mangled organs on the devastated lands beneath him. And yet, his heart only felt a despairing sense of numbness…
He didn't even notice when the Primordial Devil landed on the ground, his left foot slamming into Elia's temple and completing destroying it. He didn't feel the Primordial Devil's slaughterous gaze which bore into his near-lifeless body. He didn't even have the will left to notice that he was about to lose his life.
"Pathetic." The Primordial Devil spat out. His voice echoed out across the Heavenly Path Province, tearing the lands asunder and creating countless natural disasters.
However, these natural disasters were meaningless, since these lands were now devoid of life to witness them.
The disdain in the Primordial Devil's gaze only grew stronger when the Dao Clone of Qi slowly turned his head and faced him with a lifeless gaze. When the red-haired giant stared into the Dao Clone of Qi's brown eyes, he saw that his will had been completely broken; his heart was all but dead.
Even if the Primordial Devil didn't take action, the Dao Clone of Qi would still die, not because of his injuries, but because his dao heart was currently breaking down. Within a matter of minutes, his dao would completely collapse, and he would be as dead as a person could possibly be.
For this to happen to a cultivator with a named dao heart was almost unheard of…and in the Primordial Devil's mind, it showed that their heart was simply too weak.
The Dao Clone of Qi stared into the Primordial Devil's crimson eyes, but he felt nothing. He felt no rage, no hatred, no unwillingness…
He had never been fuelled by his rage, and he had never truly felt hatred. The Dao Clone of Qi was born from Yaan's most childish, human emotions, the emotions of a young human boy who only wanted to live a peaceful life with his loved ones.
His loved ones were dead, he had failed, he had nothing left. There was nothing left to live for, and nothing left to feel for.
The disdain in the Primordial Devil's eyes as he looked down at the Dao Clone of Qi meant nothing to him, and even as the Primordial Devil lifted up his enormous trunk of a leg, the exhausted Dao Clone only continued to watch with a lifeless expression.
He was going to die, but he couldn't even get worked up over his own death.
"Killing you won't even be enjoyable…not when you're in this state."
BANG!
The Primordial Devil stomped down. His foot obliterated the Dao Clone of Qi's body, then the shockwaves went on to flatten Heavenly Path Mountain.
The ripples of explosive power spread out further, ripping apart the entire Greenwood Mountain Range. At almost the same moment that the Dao Clone of Qi was killed, those ripples caused the Heavenly Rebirth Formation's core on Heart Mountain to disintegrate.
The grey dome vanished without so much as a sound, and the explosive ripples resulting from the Primordial Devil's stomp continued to spread out across the lands. Before long, nothing remained of the Heavenly Path Province…
Yaan's homeland, and his loved ones from the past, were all destroyed. Their lives were snuffed out, but beyond that, their every impact on this world was wiped away, removing all traces that they had ever lived from this unforgiving world.
The Primordial Devil stood still, in the midst of the wasteland that he had created, looking down at the ground for a long time. Gradually, the crimson hue across Planet Yushu subsided as he withdrew his domain. The burning hellscape of a world lost all traces of life in this moment, leaving behind only a land of death and desolation.
In the North, much of the world had been destroyed, but further out from the Primordial Devil's position, the entire planet was covered in the corpses of countless living beings.
From plants, to insects, fish, animals, demonic beasts, spirit beasts, humans, and cultivators. Without exception, everything remaining on the planet was dead, forced to stop living under the Primordial Devil's tyrannical pride.
Without a word, the Primordial Devil sat down and waited for the last remaining Dao Clone to finally return from the 5th Trial Realm. He still lacked the memories from his past life, so he had no idea how to enter his inheritance…all he could do now was wait.
*****
The Qi Plane was split into seven star systems, each of which contained millions of stars. At present, the Divine Court ruled over five of the seven star systems.
The two star systems not under the Divine Court's control were in very different situations.
The first and most prominent star system, was the Primordial Star System, sat in the centre of the Qi Plane, surrounded on all sides by the other six star systems. The Primordial Star System was regarded as the territory of the Primordial Asura, and it was a renowned gathering place for demons, not to mention the Primordial Alliance's only major territory on the Qi Plane.
The second star system which remained outside of the Divine Court's control, was the Neutral Star System. As the name implied, the Neutral Star System had no affiliation to any one organisation - it was neutral. It was probably the only star system on the Qi Plane where both members of the Divine Court and Primordial Alliance could come and go without causing a conflict to immediately break out.
However, the Neutral Star System wasn't without issues. The Divine Court had always sought to rule over the entire Qi Plane, and whilst they could not do much about the Primordial Star System, the Neutral Star System was a different matter. Ever since they succeeded in conquering the Four Divine Star System many years ago, they had turned their efforts for conquest towards the Neutral Star System, creating a region of conflict at the border of the Neutral Star System.
Currently, the Divine Court had taken control over around one tenth of the Neutral Star System, and this expansion had only accelerated ever since the disappearance of the Primordial Asura from the Qi Plane.
There was an ordinary life-planet situated at the border between the Divine Court's territory within the Neutral Star System and the remainder of the Neutral Star System, which was under the control of various powerful organisations. This specific planet belonged to a demonic group known as the World Merchant Alliance, the largest gathering of 'demons' in the Neutral Star System.
In fact, due to the extreme power held by the Primordial Alliance and the Divine Court, there weren't all that many other groups led by divinities across the Four Planes. Although vastly inferior compared to the Primordial Alliance, the World Merchant Alliance was actually the strongest demonic path organisation below the Primordial Alliance!
That said, 'demonic path' was a very general term, and in this day and age, anyone who opposed the Divine Court using violence was labelled a demonic path group. The World Merchant Alliance mostly operated peacefully within the Neutral Star System, acting as the largest wide-spread merchant group across the star system. They were only truly labelled as a demonic path group after the Divine Court invaded the Neutral Star System, and the World Merchant Alliance became the strongest force within the Neutral Star System that continued to oppose them.
A woman with divine beauty walked through the streets of a small mortal town on the surface of this planet. She had only arrived in this small town a few days ago, but she had already memorised every single mortal's name within the town, and she was greeted amicably by each person as she walked by.
"Good morning Julia!"
"Good morning, Missus Anne. It's a beautiful day today, don't you think?"
"Indeed! The sun is high and there's not a cloud in sight! Are you going for a walk today as well?"
"Yes, I thought that I would take advantage of this pleasant weather."
The woman, whom was currently going by her birth name, 'Julia', as she often did when visiting mortal settlements, smiled at the old lady. When she first arrived in this town a few days prior, she immediately noticed that this old lady was struggling with grief. Julia took it upon herself to speak with this lady each day, and unknowingly, somehow, the old woman started to come to terms with her late husband's passing.
"Haha, I bet you're going to spend your day helping us townsfolk out again, am I right?" The old woman smiled gently at Julia.
In her eyes, Julia was so young and beautiful, she could definitely marry into a noble, or even a royal household…and yet, she spent her days walking around, helping out those in need, without ever asking for anything in return.
Julia smiled and laughed pleasantly.
"You say it as if I spend my days with this goal in mind. Really, I'm just going for a walk…but when I see a person in need, isn't it natural that I help them out?"
As Julia left, the old woman watched her depart and sighed to herself whilst shaking her head.
"Oh Julia, I have never met anyone in this world as selfless as you. Perhaps, if we were all like you, there would no longer be so much injustice in this world…"
This life-planet was currently peaceful, but Julia knew that before long, tranquil scenes like this would become a rarity. As she looked around at these mortals and smiled at each person, brightening their day, nobody noticed the hint of pain, frustration and pity that filled her eyes.
And her eyes were by no means ordinary. Within each of her pupils, there were golden crosses, but for some reason, the mortals simply overlooked this oddity without paying it any attention. Her good looks were also noted by every one of the townsfolk, but in reality, if they actually noticed her true beauty, they would all fall to their knees and worship her as a goddess.
However, Julia didn't want to draw this sort of attention. This was also why she used her birth name and mingled with the mortals as if she was one of them, rather than using force and tyranny to achieve her goals whilst openly flaunting her true title, power and position.
The woman reached the bustling town centre, continuing to look around, smiling and greeting everyone whom she passed by. At the same time, the golden crosses in her eyes were shining with a brilliant light that these mortals could not see, as if searching every inch of land for traces of an unknown something.
Julia paused when she noticed a scene unfolding across the street.
Two boys were laughing as they ran around another boy, who stood still and clenched his fists shut tightly. The boy was on the verge of tears, but he held them back, even though he refused to look up at the other two boys.
"Hahaha, cry-baby Kyle is going to cry again!"
"He's going to cry over ice cream? He really is a crybaby!"
The boy named Kyle continued to stare down at the ground, but like the other two said, two streams of tears started to pour from his eyes. This caused the other two boys to laugh hysterically, thinking that this was way too much of an overreaction.
As for the other adults around, nobody bothered saying anything. In their eyes, this was only the teasing of young children, it was just normal between young boys. Nobody had the time or care to stop and deal with such a trifling situation; they had their work to attend to. But, honestly speaking, the main reason that they didn't interfere was because one of those laughing boys was the mayor's son…
Just as Kyle felt like he really was being too pathetic right now and lowered his head even further, the laughing abruptly stopped, replaced by shocked cries.
"Owch!" The two boys cried out at the same time. One boy looked up with a glare, intending to berate whichever adult had done this to him. His father was the town major, so he had developed a somewhat arrogant attitude. It had gotten to the point that he was even willing to use his status to make the other adults leave him alone…
However, when he looked up, the words got caught in his mouth. He could not find it in him to say anything, because the bright smiling face that looked back at him sent shivers down his spine.
"Now now." Julia spoke with a light laugh as she continued to pinch the two boys by the ears, eventually tightening her grip so much that these two started to shed tears of their own.
"Ah, I'm sorry Julia, I'm sorry!"
"W-we were wrong Julia, we were just playing, honest!"
"Tut tut…" Julia shook her head and sighed as she let go of their ears. They continued to look at her, but interestingly, they didn't show any anger or fear, only sheepish expressions.
After all, Julia was currently the talk of the town, not to mention the most beautiful woman they had ever seen! Nobody was willing to be rude to her, simply because of her beauty and aura. When the boys were caught doing something bad by the woman who instantly became famous due to her selflessness and kindness, they felt embarrassed and somewhat ashamed.
For now, Julia ignored the two boys, turning her attention towards Kyle. She softly placed a finger under his chin, then lifted his head up such that he was forced to look her in the eyes.
The boy wore a humiliated expression, but Julia actually kelt down on the dirty ground such that her eye level was at his own, then smiled at him softly. She patted his curly black hair, causing the boy to blush, and making her laugh charmingly once again.
"A man should never lower his head in the face of injustice. Always remember that, Kyle. One day, you will grow up into a strong man, a man who never lowers his head towards the injustice in this world. When that day comes, you won't cry over ice cream, not even when it costs you your well-earned savings."
Kyle's eyes widened, before he quickly teared up again. He hastily wiped his tears, then looked at Julia with a firm expression and nodded.
She had immediately seen through the truth behind why Kyle was crying; his family was poor, much poorer than either of the other two rich kids could understand. He had saved up all week so that he could buy this ice cream today whilst also having enough money to buy the ingredients for his family's dinner…
And then, his two 'friends', actually went and slapped his hand, knowing that it would make him cry. After all, he cried all the time, all the kids in town knew it.
Julia stood up, patted his head again, then gently placed a single coin into his palm. When Kyle looked down, he felt dazed to see that this…was actually a gold coin!
"Th-thank you Julia! Thank you!"
The other two boys felt bewildered when Kyle held this coin close to his chest and burst into tears once again.
However, Julia would never let an injustice go unresolved. With a stern expression, she turned to the other two boys and placed her hands on her hips.
"You two, do you want to grow up into fine, righteous men? You should know…women like me, are only interested in righteous men."
The two boys' eyes widened. They shared a glance, then as if scared that they would fail to answer her question quickly enough, they shouted back:
"We do!"
"Well then." Julia went on. "A righteous man must always show kindness, dignity and humility. Did you ever think about how your lives might be very different from Kyle's? Kyle's family isn't as affluent as your merchant family, Philip, and not as powerful as your family, Trevor. To Kyle, this ice cream took him many hours of hard-work to afford…hard work that neither of you have ever so much as attempted before."
The two boys looked shocked, turning to Kyle, who looked a bit embarrassed.
"I…I didn't know…I thought it was just an ice cream…"
"Y-yeah…s-sorry that I slapped it out of your hand, Kyle…"
"Ah…it's…it's ok…just please don't do it again…" Kyle muttered.
"Oho, what a good example of forgiveness!" Julia laughed charmingly. "How impressive, but that's the son of a farmer for you, I would expect no less. You will certainly grow up to be a fine young man, Kyle."
Kyle stared at her in a daze, shocked to hear these words of praise towards him coming from the mouth of such a perfect woman!
Julia then looked back at the other two.
"You two would do well to learn from Kyle. Understand?"
"We understand!"
Julia left this encounter with a smile on her face. Doing good, spreading kindness and resolving injustice always filled her heart with the warmth that she believed was needed in this dark and uncaring world.
However, her smile suddenly vanished just as she was about to enter a store. She sharply turned around, looked up, and stared in a certain direction. Her eyes lit up with an immense golden light, breaking the illusion of her mortal appearance. At the same time, her concealed aura erupted outwards, covering not only this town, not only the province, then nation, and the continent…but the entire planet with the golden glow of justice!
Instantly, the townsfolk dropped to their knees. They did not know what was going on, but when they saw Julia's current visage, and when they felt the warm golden light emanating from her very soul, they all couldn't help but fall to their knees and break down in tears.
Not one of these mortals would ever forget this day, the day that they saw the true nature of Justice.
The woman's true name was indeed Julia, but her title…was Justice Deity!
She was a member of the Divine Court, but more importantly, she was Law Empyrean's one and only disciple!
As Justice Deity stared into the distance and her eyes shone with golden light, two streams of tears fell from her cheeks. When these tears hit the ground, they soaked deep into the planet, providing it with a nourishment that only Justice could provide.
Her tears changed the planet's very karmic fate, and provided every single living being present with immense good fortune. Her aura and tears merged into one, inflicting an impact upon the minds of all who saw her.
After this day, these mortals would gradually start to change. Some time later, due to the extreme righteousness shown by the residents of this town, this town would become a legend, known as the Town of Justice.
Justice Deity vanished from the surface of the life-planet, reappearing within the vacuum of space. Her golden gaze pierced through the world, as she looked into the immense dark aura, emanating towards her from far away.
"Such a great injustice…the senseless early demise of all living beings upon a life-planet…and the tragic death of a pure-hearted maiden…"
Justice muttered to herself as her tears continued to flow.
All divinities were different, and they all had their own unique strengths. As for Justice Deity, with her Divine Power and her heart of justice, she was able to see through all of the justice in this world. When an immense injustice took place, no matter where on the Qi Plane it might be, she would immediately sense it, and in extreme cases, she could precisely locate its origin.
This was one such extreme case.
Without another word, Justice Deity set off towards Planet Yushu.
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