Proving the Dao of Hunyuan from the Age of Witches

Chapter 132 Friends and Enemies

Luo Xi remained expressionless as she watched Yue Tong and Bai Nuo leave in a hurry.

After her younger sister Luo Xin awakened her spacetime interference, Rose and Lily seemed to have endless topics to discuss with her privately.

Luo Xi simply watched the three of them leave together, without saying a word or making a move.

After sitting silently in the empty conference room for a few minutes, Luo Xi opened the window again and flew out without a sound.

High in the air, she looked down at the workers toiling like ants in the Vishzhe Group's base, her heart as still as water, devoid of any thoughts.

She didn't know where to go, and just flew aimlessly. Before she knew it, she had arrived at the cemetery she had visited before.

The cemetery was filled with tall, lush pines and cypresses, and was completely silent.

She landed slowly, walked to the graves of her parents in this life, found a relatively clean spot, and slowly sat down.

Despite being a witch who could endure the pain of having her consciousness torn apart, she felt a chill inexplicably at this moment, unsure whether it was the cold wind in the cemetery or something else.

She didn't know if it was because she had become a witch, but she felt that her heart was no longer as firm or as cold as before.

Perhaps... it was due to some subtle influence from the rose before.

After a long silence, Luo Xi sighed softly and whispered to the tombstone, "I said last time that it would be the last time I came to see you... but I had nowhere else to go, so I came here again."

It's truly regrettable, but because of her past life experiences, she has never believed in so-called family affection. After transmigrating to this world, although her parents treated her extremely well, she remained wary and never truly let her guard down.

For more than a decade, until their unexpected deaths, she never accepted the kinship the world had given her, and never truly acknowledged them in her heart.

For some reason, Luo Xi felt a pang of guilt towards her parents in this world.

"I'm sorry, I originally planned to take care of Xiaoxin until she came of age, to repay your kindness in raising her," her voice was very soft, almost dissipating in the wind, "but now, Xiaoxin is already very strong... even I can't beat her anymore."

As she spoke, she sighed again.

Even though Luo Xin's performance was already quite outstanding, and she was even determined to be her enemy for the sake of her beliefs, her younger sister, who was once considered a "burden," had grown up and no longer needed her to worry about her. This should have been a source of comfort, but she felt no joy at all.

With so many things weighing on her mind, Luo Xi didn't know who to confide in or where to begin. After a long silence, she finally spoke to herself again in front of the cold tombstone.

"She won't be bullied by others now. I'll observe her for a while longer, and once I'm completely sure of that, I can rest easy." She stared blankly at her parents' names on the tombstone, as if lost in thought.

Recalling her past life, Luo Xi's face remained calm.

In her previous life, she was called a "burden" by her own mother. When this thought flashed through her mind, Luo Xi suddenly realized that she was now playing the role of her mother in her previous life.

She also regarded her younger sister, Luo Xin, as a "burden".

Realizing this, a chilling sense of dread suddenly gripped her heart.

Even after arriving in a new world, can she still not let go of the shadows of the past? Even though she had completely despaired of her past life, everything she had experienced had already left deep marks on her heart, and even after transmigrating, these marks remained with her like a shadow.

Luo Xi sat there silently, beginning to examine her own heart, letting the silent chill spread.

……

Meanwhile, in the apartment building of the Vishzhe Group, Rose, Lily, and Luo Xin gathered together.

"You won, Rose and Lily," Luo Xin's voice was somewhat low. "I thought I could make it through a month... but I never expected that I would lose this bet on the very first day."

"Why bother?" Rose smiled slightly, her eyes seemingly seeing through everything, while Lily made no move.

Luo Xin's "spacetime interference" characteristic must be accompanied by the ability to observe other timelines or spatial fragments. Although the specific limitations are unclear, Luo Xin would never admit defeat so quickly.

It's quite interesting, really. Her destiny had already told Rose that she would win, but she didn't expect to win so easily.

Yes, that bet—if Luo Xi does something that Luo Xin absolutely cannot accept, then Qiangwei wins; if Luo Xi never crosses Luo Xin's bottom line, then Qiangwei loses.

Luo Xin actually admitted defeat so easily. If she had stubbornly refused to admit it, Qiangwei would have been helpless, but Luo Xin just had to give in.

"That's ruthless... Over a billion people, she just kills them like that?" Luo Xin's face was terribly gloomy, her voice filled with icy anger.

"When Xi came to my world in her 'initial state,' I met her. She was severely injured and had lost her memory. At that time, she was the best Xi. She would never have done something so extreme." Rose said softly, as if recalling a distant time, a part of her memory that she had recovered.

"But as Luo Xi's memories gradually returned, she became more and more paranoid and ruthless. Even so, she never did anything too outrageous to me or my world," Rose paused before continuing, "So, before her Dao heart completely collapsed, I accepted her invitation and came to this world."

"I want to know what exactly happened to her, what she... what she went through in her previous life." Rose's gaze was calm and deep as she looked at Luo Xin.

"Hmph, do you know why she was severely injured and lost her memory?" Luo Xin suddenly sneered, her smile filled with icy mockery. "I did it."

"In that timeline, she actually wanted to destroy my world, to destroy all life in this world!" Luo Xin's sneer was chilling.

"So I'm curious, in this world, she didn't experience anything too terrible," Rose frowned slightly, a look of doubt on her face, "I want to know, what exactly happened to her in her previous life...?"

"I can't tell you that," Luo Xin refused decisively, her tone cold and hard.

"However, I can assist you in 'restoring' Luo Xi, my brother," Luo Xin's tone softened, even tinged with weariness, as if recalling some unpleasant scenes. "The principle is that absolutely no coercive measures can be used!"

"Fine, if you don't want to talk about it, then forget it," Rose's eyes remained calm, then she murmured as if talking to herself, "Xi is really amazing... The fact that 'absolute rationality' and 'extreme madness' can coexist in one body is truly astonishing. This ability to control the mind, consciousness, and spirit is truly amazing."

"That's normal. So-called 'absolute rationality' and 'extreme madness' are simply two manifestations of taking emotion and rationality to their extremes. She was originally my brother, a male, whose thinking leaned towards rationality, but after becoming a witch, she possessed both of these seemingly contradictory traits, which is why she could utilize both emotion and rationality to their extremes," Luo Xin explained, but her tone was not relaxed.

"But what's the price?" Rose suddenly asked, her gaze sharpening. "She's almost at that point now, extremely insane yet absolutely rational. The fact that she can propose such a crazy plan as wiping out one-tenth of the population to counter the Witch Council's headquarters, and then calmly discuss it with us, is proof of that."

"..." Luo Xin was speechless for a moment, unable to say anything.

"When I could still influence her, she seemed a bit dull, a bit immature, a bit funny, even... a bit cute," Rose paused, her voice lowering, "but now she's terrifyingly meticulous, planning something outrageous while simultaneously holding meetings and drinking tea with us as if nothing's wrong."

"I think this is your fault," Luo Xin glanced coldly at Qiangwei, her words sharp. "If you hadn't insisted on using 'consciousness interference' to influence her, she wouldn't have been so eager to find a way to lock down her consciousness. Now, she has completely 'locked down' her consciousness... I'm afraid we can no longer interfere with her from the outside."

"The ultimate goal of every extreme idea she has is to kill herself," Rose suddenly stated her conclusion. "She may seem to be pursuing the path of cultivation she speaks of, but in reality, she has always been looking for a way to kill herself."

"But she's clearly not like that! I've seen her normal self..." Rose continued, "That's why I was so anxious, so I used rather drastic methods."

Yes, haste makes waste. She may have been too aggressive in interfering with Luo Xi at the beginning. Although it was quite effective at first, the drawbacks are now becoming apparent.

In this time and space, in this world, Luo Xi, in this "deflected state" state, actually completed the "deadlock" of consciousness earlier than the "initial state" state of Luo Xi!

"This afternoon, you should have a good talk with your brother, Luo Xi. After all, she's your closest relative, and..." Rose paused, her voice softening, "She probably has other plans and doesn't really intend to retaliate against the Witch Council by eliminating one-tenth of the population."

"Hmm?" Luo Xin was slightly taken aback, then remembered what Luo Xi had said.

"First are the witches, then the ordinary people. What we need to do is protect our friends." These are Luo Xi's exact words.

"Protect our...friends..." Luo Xin's eyes flashed, and she instantly realized that this was Luo Xi's true thought!

Her brother, Luo Xi, would never do something like eliminating one-tenth of the population to retaliate against the Witch Council.

With a quick glance, Luo Xin subconsciously began to analyze the problem from both Luo Xi's and the perspectives of the Witch Council's headquarters.

The most fundamental contradiction lies in the fact that the Witch Council headquarters is everyone's common enemy! How to fight against this enemy is the core issue.

Let's analyze this seemingly crazy proposal itself. Suppose Luo Xi really wiped out one-tenth of the population to deter the Witch Council. What would the Witch Council do?

First, they will inevitably mobilize all available military force to fight against Luo Xi, because once Luo Xi does such a heinous thing, regardless of her inner purpose, on the surface, she has already stood on the opposite side of the whole world.

The most likely scenario is that she will join forces with Rose and Lily to stop Luo Xi and nip this terrible proposal in the bud, giving her no chance to make a move.

Let's assume that Luo Xi is powerful enough to fight against the combined forces of Rose and Lily, and actually manages to wipe out one-tenth of the population... then how will the Witch Council act?

If Luo Xi can withstand the combined efforts of the three of them, then it's practically as if there's no force in the world that can truly restrain her.

So, the most likely option for the Witch Council is... to run away?

No, no.

Luo Xi's core purpose in clearing the population was to convey to the Witch Council the message that "witches don't care about humans at all."

However... if the witch truly doesn't care about humans, there's no need for her to deliberately eliminate the population! This act itself would only reveal her true intentions!

Therefore, as long as the higher-ups of the Witch Council aren't all idiots, they'll eventually realize that the claim that "witches don't care about humans" is a lie! They can still continue to use the tactic of kidnapping all of humanity to blackmail and intimidate!

Luo Xi's suggestion is fundamentally unworkable.

Haha! Luo Xin immediately grasped the crux of the problem, and her mood instantly brightened.

Her brother, who always seemed to have perfect strategies, actually made mistakes! Thinking of this, Luo Xin couldn't help but laugh out loud, a mix of pride and relief welling up inside her.

"What's wrong?" Seeing Luo Xin suddenly laugh, Qiangwei and Baihe both cast puzzled glances at each other.

"It's nothing," Luo Xin's eyes flickered, clearly hiding something, but the smile on her lips couldn't be concealed. "This afternoon, I'll persuade my brother!"

"That's good." Rose nodded, seemingly seeing through her thoughts but not pointing them out. "I'll go check on your brother."

"Go ahead, go ahead!" Luo Xin was now full of anticipation for the afternoon tea party. She couldn't wait to use logic to defeat Luo Xi in Luo Xi's area of ​​expertise and to thoroughly dampen her always calm and composed sharpness.

Thinking of how his cunning older brother, who had just taken over as the Minister of the Yin-Yang Department of the Vishzhe Group, had been refuted by him, Luo Xin couldn't help but let out a light laugh. What a wonderful thing it was to defeat the other party in the area where they were most confident.

Rose looked at Luo Xin, who was suddenly in a good mood, with some confusion. Then she regained her calm expression, gently called to the vines, and Rose's figure disappeared from the spot along with the swaying green branches.

……

"Luo Xi..." Rose looked at the lonely figure sitting in front of her parents' tombstone and felt a pang of sympathy.

"The wind is so strong, why are you here all alone?" Rose slowly approached, her soft voice breaking the silence of the cemetery and interrupting Luo Xi's daze.

"I don't know." Luo Xi didn't turn around, but simply replied with three words, seemingly neither surprised nor concerned about Qiangwei's arrival.

"Would you like to... talk to me?" Rose asked softly as she naturally found a seat next to Luo Xi.

"It's not a matter of whether you want to or not," Luo Xi glanced at Qiangwei, then looked back at the tombstone. "Say what you want to say."

"Xiao Xi," Rose's voice softened, tinged with a cautious probing, "before you came into this world...did you experience anything very sad or painful?"

"No," Luo Xi forced a smile, "I was just being too dramatic before."

"Then... can I hug you?" Rose asked, her eyes filled with genuine concern.

"Weren't you quite casual before? You'd just pull me onto the bed, make me dance, and always tie me up with vines..." Luo Xi looked at Qiangwei with some surprise, her tone devoid of emotion. "What's wrong with you today? Why are you suddenly so... polite?"

"I'm sorry about what happened before..." Rose ignored the barb in her words, and simply reached out her hand, tentatively, and then firmly, pulled her into her arms.

Luo Xi stiffened slightly, but she did not resist or respond. She simply let Qiangwei hug her, her eyes still calmly gazing ahead, as if all of this had nothing to do with her.

"From now on, I won't do anything you don't like anymore." Rose's voice was low, and along with her faint fragrance, it reached Luo Xi's ears.

"I don't care, I don't mind." Luo Xi's voice remained calm.

"You're so lonely..." Rose's arms tightened slightly, her voice filled with heartache. "You never open your heart to anyone, not even a little bit."

"If a cultivator cannot even endure loneliness..." Luo Xi nestled quietly in Rose's embrace, her voice sounding somewhat distant, "then it's better not to cultivate at all."