OUTSIDE OF TIME

481 My Heart Will Not Change

What was a god?

Xu Qing didn’t know if this was the question the others were asked, nor did he know their answers.

At that moment, he stood in the starry sky and lowered his head to look at the terrifying fragmented-face of the god below.

He looked at its golden spine circling around the continent like it was a food.

All of this caused Xu Qing to be at a loss.

Instinctively, the first time he saw the eye of the god’s fragmented-face that was spread out in the sky and controlled all living beings appeared in his mind.

After that time, his family was gone. All the beauty was lost and the city dissipated into the world.

In the blood rain, what was left was only fear, crying, and helplessness.

Xu Qing fell silent.

He recalled the few years when he was a street kid. At that time, regardless of whether the thing was edible or inedible, he had eaten them all in order to survive.

His only bottom line was that he didn’t eat humans.

He had smelled human flesh before and seen living humans being eaten until they were bones and boiled into soup.

There were times when he was extremely hungry. However, when he looked at the scavengers who ate humans and then at the fragmented-face of the god in the sky, he felt that he might as well die if he lived like that.

And what he was most afraid of, other than hunger, was winter.

Every winter was a life-and-death test.

He had seen too many people who had frozen to death and stripped too many of the dead’s clothes. It could be said that at that time, every piece of clothing he wore came from the dead.

Hence, he cared a lot about his new clothes.

There were also anomalous substances.

The torture was slow but it was incomparably painful.

On his path, he, who was at the lowest level in this world, saw the miserable lives of countless people and the darkness of human nature.

There were many people like him who lived in pain and endured the despair of having no future.

Every time he was on the verge of death, he would lift his head and look at the dignified and cold fragmented-face of the god in the sky. Looking at its clean face, it was as though he could see its indifferent eyes again.

…

Xu Qing fell silent.

His memories slowly flowed in his mind. He thought of the small city he ultimately chose to settle down in. The second time the god opened his eyes appeared in front of him. Different from the first time, that small city didn’t disappear.

Hence, he saw numerous greenish-black corpses, the fiendish aura of the mutated, pieces of collapsed flesh and blood, and the rotting stench that couldn’t be dispersed.

After that, he thought of the breathing of the red moon, the high and mighty posture, and the unholy aura it emitted.

After that, he thought of the golden eye in the ghost cave and the quavering singing of the red woman in the wooden hut to comfort it.

All of this appeared in his mind.

In the end, all the scenes overlapped with the fragmented-face of the god outside the Wanggu Continent.

Gradually, in his heart, it gathered into a sentence that he had said countless times when he was young.

What was a god?

“Son of a b*tch!”

Xu Qing lifted his head and looked at the huge light source above the starry sky. He then looked at the figure that could faintly be seen inside and calmly spoke.

As soon as he said this, the light source swayed violently and that gentle voice suddenly rang out.

“What did you say?”

“I said, gods are sons of b*tches!” Xu Qing’s expression was serious. After he spoke again, he added.

“When I was young, I called it a bastard!”

Xu Qing pointed at the god’s fragmented-face below.

“I even called it a pig bastard.”

Xu Qing thought about it carefully and continued.

“The curse I used the most was f*cker!”

After saying that, Xu Qing spat at the god’s fragmented-face below.

When he was young, every time he cursed the god, he would spit.

In the past, it would always land on the ground. This time, Xu Qing was very happy. He felt that it might land on the god’s face.

The moment the phlegm fell, the light source above shone unprecedentedly intensely. The gentle voice inside turned into laughter.

“Sons of b*tches, f*ckers!”

This laughter was carefree and grew louder and louder, causing the entire starry sky to tremble. When Xu Qing’s vision turned blurry, he heard praises coming from the laughter.

“There are many people who cursed the god, but very few can walk in front of me and still speak up like this. No one knows that I cursed god like this back then. However, I’m not as good as you because I didn’t spit.”

“Little friend, although your body has flaws, they cannot obscure the virtues. I’ll bestow you with a radiance of a hundred thousand feet. I hope that you won’t change your heart no matter what!”

At the next instant, amidst the rumbling sounds formed by the laughter, Xu Qing’s vision blurred. He was still standing on the steps and in front of the emperor’s statue. The instant he lifted his head, the emperor’s statue trembled intensely and erupted with a monstrous light.

This light reached more than 20,000 feet in the blink of an eye and was still spreading.

It didn’t end when it reached more than 40,000 feet. It reached more than 60,000 feet, 80,000 feet… Finally, it spread out and reached 100,000 feet in length!

The color of the sky changed and the wind and clouds churned. The entire sky seemed to be about to be penetrated by this light and it could be seen clearly from afar.

This was unprecedented!

The expressions of all the humans in Absolute Beginning Separation City changed drastically. Even though it was a solemn occasion, they still let out waves of involuntary cries.

“Hundred… a hundred thousand feet?!”

Shocking waves rose in their minds.

Countless uproars and exclamations echoed like thunder. All the Sword Holders in the sky were also shaken intensely. All of them looked at the emperor’s statue and Xu Qing in shock.

They didn’t know if a hundred thousand feet radiance had appeared in the other counties, but it had never appeared in Fenghai County!

This kind of thing had already exceeded everyone’s imagination.

Even Xue Lianzi, who was on the ground, was dazed.

“Old Seven’s disciple… is so amazing?”

They weren’t the only ones. At that moment, the Sword Holder Elders in the sky were also moved like never before. All of their eyes revealed a strange glint as they looked at Xu Qing as though he was a supreme treasure.

This was especially so for the Sword Holder Great Elder. He had long recognized Xu Qing and his eyes revealed an intense glint.

This was because they were very clear that in the heart inquisition, all those who participated in the ritual could be said to have been given the emperor’s blessing. However, in reality, this was only an assessment ritual and was considered an invisible condition for advancement.

Only by reaching a certain length could it be considered a true emperor’s blessing. For example, Qing Qiu would be valued by the Sword Holding Court.

However… if it reached an unprecedented height of 100,000 feet, then this couldn’t be described as a blessing.

This was personally appointed by the Great Emperor!

It was incomparable!

For such a Sword Holder to appear in the Yinghuang Province, it was a great merit for the Sword Holding Court.

At this moment, everyone in the sky and on the ground was shocked.

Qing Qiu was stunned as well. She stared blankly at all of this and an indescribable feeling rose in the depths of her mind. She turned her head and looked at Xu Qing, her eyes shining.

“Don’t. In the future, we won’t perish together with him… I’m afraid.” In her mind, the evil ghost quickly persuaded.

At the side, Ning Yan’s entire body was trembling at this moment. His eyes revealed deep horror. He thought of his previous attack and was so nervous that his entire body was drenched in cold sweat.

The captain was also stunned. He foolishly looked at the light of the emperor’s statue and a deep confusion appeared in his mind.

“Why? Why am I only given ten feet light? My answer is also very good.”

“How did Little Qing answer?”

The captain mumbled and abruptly looked at Xu Qing. The curiosity in his mind was extremely intense. In reality, it wasn’t just him. Everyone wanted to know what Xu Qing’s answer was.

As for Zhang Siyun, who was at the edge, he lowered his head and clenched his fists tightly.

As for Xu Qing, who was the center of attention, he was silent.

He looked at the hundred thousand feet radiance from the Great Emperor’s statue and the intense waves in the sky. Actually, he didn’t think his answer was very good because he had seen too many people cursing the god like this when he was young.

When it was difficult to even survive, even if one was afraid of the god, they naturally still had the courage to scold Him.

This was the courage of a small fry and also the lamentability of a small fry.

What the emperor’s statue had said earlier echoed in Xu Qing’s mind.

This reminded him of the slums when he was young. Only those who were on their deathbeds would become fearless and dare to mock and insult the city lord.

However, when they still had food to eat, they would be like the rich people in the city and be respectful to the city lord, not daring to disobey at all.

Xu Qing vaguely understood but he didn’t know if what he was thinking was correct. This lasted until the lingering sound of the emperor’s statue in his mind kept echoing with the last sentence.

I hope that you won’t change your heart no matter what!

Xu Qing nodded.

The 100,000-foot-long light from the emperor’s statue shocked not only the Yinghuang Province.

Far away from the Yinghuang Province, in the capital of Fenghai County, which was very far away from the Yinghuang Province, a bell rang in the Sword Holding Palace.

The Dao bell of the Sword Holding Palace was given by the Grand Imperial Capital Region. For countless years, it only rang when something major happened.

However, today, the bell suddenly rang.

Although it was only once, it still caused the expressions of all the cultivators in the Sword Holding Palace to change and waves of emotions to surge in their minds. Very soon, the reason why the Dao bell rang was investigated.

“Xu Qing, the new Sword Holder of the Yinghuang Province, went through heart inquisition. The emperor blessed him with a hundred thousand feet radiance. Therefore, the Dao bell of Fenghai County rang once!”

This answer shocked all the Sword Holders in the Sword Holding Palace and they memorized a name.

Xu Qing!

There were also many auras that carried an impertinent intent that rose from the Sword Holding Palace. These people who emitted their auras were all geniuses of this generation.

They were from the various provinces of Fenghai County. They were all people who had come to report in person after obtaining the status of Sword Holder.

As the Yinghuang Province was far offshore, it was also the last place to hold the Sword Holder assessment.

The Sword Holders from the Yinghuang Province had just completed the selection process and still needed some time before they could report to the Sword Holding Palace. At that moment, before Xu Qing arrived, his name had already spread throughout the Sword Holding Palace.

At that moment, in the back mountain of the Sword Holding Palace, in a sword forest, a woman in white was slowly walking out.

This woman’s appearance was exquisite. Her lips were like red clouds and her figure was enchanting. At first glance, she looked flirtatious, especially with a mole under her right eye. However, her expression was as cold as autumn frost.

She was a peerless beauty that could cause the downfall of a city.

After she walked to the edge of the sword forest, she looked in the direction of the Yinghuang Province. Her red lips parted slightly and her voice was like a clear spring.

“Yinghuang Province… Yun’er should be here soon. Mother will wait for you here.”