Chapter 315: "Father-Son" Dialogue |
A quiet room, devoid of people, was an ideal place for the “father and son” to converse. It was even more convenient than when Qiu Wuji was around.
Chu Ge didn’t hesitate for long and directly split his consciousness to materialize in front of Chu Tiange. He had instinctively taken on the appearance of a traditional costume, the attire of a core disciple of the Cloud Horizon Sect.
Chu Tiange looked at Chu Ge’s somewhat similar features, then he curled his lips and said, “Damn, you’re even more handsome than me.”
Chu Ge: “..”
“But it’s alright, you don’t look exactly like me, which makes me feel more comfortable.”
“Indicating that you’re not a stand-in, right?”
“Right, you’ve removed a block in my heart,” Chu Tiange said with a grin. “But I have a feeling you might be turning into my stand-in, like, should I be the one wearing these clothes?”
Chu Ge blinked.
Wearing similar clothes is one thing… Have you noticed… what else I might have handled?
“Originally?”
“Yes, originally. You’re someone with strong beliefs, someone who will pursue your own path, just like the Nine-Sword Radiance you displayed earlier… Uh, wait, you’re asking about the original plan. Do you know what’s really going on?”
“I’m not entirely certain. Initially, I was guessing which category it belonged to, like if it was a pre-arranged destiny or something like that. Later, after considering various aspects and my own feelings, I eventually realized it’s not just me having a pre-arranged destiny, but rather, it’s the entire world like a chessboard, and the world itself is being vividly painted day by day… In any case, this situation could be seen as a form of ‘creation,’ whether it’s the creation by a higher power or something else. So, saying there’s an original plan or not doesn’t seem to be a big issue.”
“Yeah, you truly are an Earth soul, open-minded, and able to understand things. If it were Xie Jiuxiao and the others, despite their high cultivation, it would be extremely difficult for them to figure out the truth.”
“True, they are people of this world, while I, on the other hand, am at least a transmigrated soul, so I understand some of these nuances. But here’s the problem…” Chu Tiange’s smile gradually faded. “Do you know why I didn’t want to meet you before?”
Chu Ge said, “Wasn’t it because you thought your cultivation wasn’t enough?”
“No,” Chu Tiange looked at him with a serious expression. “I don’t know whether I’m a soul chosen by you, someone who transcended from Earth to this world, and my destiny is controlled by you. Or if even my memories of Earth are false. Am I simply a character created in this way?”
Chu Ge was briefly stunned, and for a moment, he couldn’t respond.
“To have one’s fate manipulated in this life is one thing, but even if the memories from the previous life are fake, I don’t want to face that. I’m afraid I’ll go crazy, want to kill you, want to destroy this false world…” Chu Tiange whispered, “I can’t handle it. Can you?”
Chu Ge also thought he couldn’t handle it, which was why he couldn’t answer. If his actions in this life were false, that would be one thing, but if his memories from two lifetimes were false, it was indeed very tragic. If it were him, he would have been filled with frustration long ago.
Another reason he couldn’t answer was that he wasn’t entirely sure about the answer.
This world was constructed by him, and everything about the characters, including their thoughts and abilities, was derived from the logic of this world. None of them, including Qiu Wuji or Yan Qianli, could escape this framework, and that was easily understandable. Chu Tiange, however, was an exception. He possessed knowledge equal to his own and even knowledge that exceeded his own… After all, most protagonists knew things the author did not, such as most historical novel protagonists who had an extensive knowledge of gunpowder recipes and classical poetry and essays.
Chu Tiange also had some modern knowledge that surpassed Chu Ge’s. Where did that come from, and who gave it to him?
If that was the case, could he create an all-knowing and all-powerful person by simply writing him as omniscient?
That was beyond the scope of understanding, and there was no answer.
Chu Tiange self-deprecatingly smiled. “Before I figured out how to face you, it was better not to meet.”
“I understand,” Chu Ge nodded and asked, “So why did you suddenly decide to meet me today, even at your weakest?”
“Because you’ve been observing me all this time, and my avoidance seems meaningless when I think about it. It feels more and more like being a clown. As for choosing to meet at my weakest moment…” Chu Tiange smiled gently. “I was afraid that when I was most furious, I would want to kill you. It wouldn’t look good if we had a confrontation, so I decided to meet you at my weakest, which would help me control my temper.”
Chu Ge burst into laughter. “So, essentially, when you said you’d meet me later, you were thinking you’d become stronger and then kill me.”
Chu Tiange weakly smiled. “That would depend on some other factors as well, like today’s desire to see you, which was also driven by a reason…”
“Tell me.”
“Today’s battle made me wonder when you’re going to stop these calamities. Don’t you think you’ve gone too far? How many people have died in these disasters across the Divine Continent… and you seem to enjoy them, causing several similar incidents, with the last one involving Yan Qianli…”
Chu Ge sighed. “It’s just a story.”
Chu Tiange said, “But it’s my reality. The deceased could be my friends, as well as countless innocent people.”
Chu Ge gazed at him intently, and Chu Tiange met his gaze without flinching.
The “father and son” stared at each other for a while before Chu Ge cautiously said, “In a world without the manipulation of any higher powers, there will still be endless conflicts and even psychopathic killers. It’s the fundamental nature of humanity that cannot be avoided in any world.”
Chu Tiange looked at him, temporarily without a rebuttal, waiting for him to continue.
“In the absence of any calculations on my part, as long as this world gives birth to living beings, there will inevitably be similar events. There will be conflicts and killings like those you’ve experienced, there will be bloodshed in national wars, there will be a showdown between the righteous and the demonic, and there will be struggles between civilizations, both domestic and foreign. Do you agree?”
Chu Tiange remained silent for a moment and finally said, “Yes, it will happen.”
“I’m merely extrapolating what could happen in this world as it is. And because of my preferences, I’m reluctant to favor the bad guys, so the final outcome in the stories is often that evil doesn’t prevail. If it weren’t for me, based on the natural extrapolation of a world driven by force, do you believe there would be more deaths, heavier oppression, and human lives treated as mere chattel?” Chu Ge said. “So, do you think that my straightforward stories are wrong, or is it the very creation of this world that’s a mistake?”
Chu Tiange opened his mouth, then closed it. After a long pause, he sighed. “I can’t get over this hurdle in my heart. I always feel like you directed so many people’s deaths single-handedly, and that’s one of the sources of my past displeasure towards you. But in your view, everything is so natural… Is this the perspective of the great Dao of Heaven?”
Chu Ge said, “It’s not that I want to play around with concepts like ‘the Dao of Heaven’ and the world being without deaths. Do you think it’s plausible?”
“Listening to what you’re saying, I understand the general idea. You want to guide a world towards a positive direction… No wonder the Sect Master, such a chivalrous person, has such a good relationship with you and plays these tricks of recruiting you as a disciple to indirectly help you manage the world.”
“Please don’t bring up your Sect Master…” Chu Ge’s cheeks twitched and he said, “Now that you know this is a story and a tale of good triumphing over evil, you should also know that following my narrative is the most responsible course of action for all life in this world. With you at the helm, I’m confident you won’t mess it up, right?”
Chu Tiange said dully, “I don’t want to be your puppet.”
Chu Ge waved his hand. “Let’s discuss that later. Anyway, that’s my original intention. If I lose control and some ambitious individual starts messing things up, that would be the real tragedy. Do you have any more questions now?”
Chu Tiange looked at him strangely for a while and said, “Why are you being so nice to me? I was questioning you and even harboring thoughts of killing you, yet you calmly explained to me and even said you wanted me to manage the world.”
Chu Ge was taken aback for a moment, then remembered that despite all the talk about the “story,” he hadn’t revealed yet that this was a novel. From Chu Tiange’s perspective, it still seemed like a supreme being was overseeing the world’s development.
They were still not on the same page. Your modern power of imagination, isn’t it rather lacking?
Chu Ge thought for a moment, unsure whether or not to tell him this was a novel. He just said, “In a sense, I may not be as good to you as I am to Qiu Wuji.”
Chu Tiange suddenly said, “They mentioned that you, who is acting as a disciple, might be an incarnation of the Heavenly Dao, but should we put it this way, you are the actual Heavenly Dao, and I am one of your incarnations.”
Chu Ge’s expression became peculiar.
This idea was quite intriguing. In his initial perspective, it was true, because the protagonist was supposed represent his sense of substitution in a world of fantasy.
“Once, I thought… that I was a clone you created. You watched me coldly from the heavens, arranging for my growth until I reached a certain suitable point. Then, you reached out to devour me to fulfill your Great Dao,” Chu Tiange stared into his eyes and slowly said, “What do you think? Does my idea make sense?”