Endless Debt

Chapter 1293: Chapter 89: Lullaby_2

Sai Zong nodded and then said, "Until that night, I racked my brain but couldn’t come up with an answer, and he kept silent. When dawn came, we acted as if nothing had happened, marching off into the next war."

"Can one really pretend nothing happened?" Leviathan asked.

Sai Zong sighed gently, "That conversation was like a seed, it took root deep in my heart and continued to grow over the days, until it broke free from its constraints."

"In later wars, I wasn’t as consumed by slaughter as before. I began searching for other things, things akin to war, that could interest me. He was the same; before that night, after each war, we would collect the enemy’s skulls at most. But later, we started gathering weapons, artworks, books.

We destroyed city after city, but before the flames consumed them, we’d preserve the most precious items from the city, proudly calling them our spoils of war.

I no longer fought like a savage. I started to believe in honor, had my own slogans, war songs, flags before charging, and we even developed our own brotherhood culture. Everyone hoped to be buried in the Bone Storage Room after death..."

"Oh? That’s hardly a good culture," Leviathan sharply commented, "but it’s already a decent progress to civilize you barbarians."

Sai Zong ignored Leviathan’s sarcasm. He had grown accustomed to this mean fellow. To this day, Sai Zong still cherished those times, the turning point in his life.

"So many years passed like that, and one night he asked me the question again, this time I wasn’t as confused.

Honestly, I prefer being an observer rather than a participant in the world, to quietly watch the world evolve. If one day I am freed from this brutal duty, I would retreat to the Bone Storage Room, keeping company with my brothers until I die."

Standing in front of the gate, Leviathan listened to the snoring. Along with Sai Zong’s narration, Leviathan became curious about the stories they had experienced, curious about what his furious and obstinate brother had gone through to transform into this current state.

Just like the Land of Unceasing of blood and glory, how did it become this decaying haven where drunkards exchange cynical jokes?

"And him? Did he ever consider what to do after giving up the killing?"

Leviathan asked Sai Zong. He knew his blood relative couldn’t give up the killing; it was the Original Sin etched into his very bones, inevitable.

Everyone is a slave to destiny, even the Devil.

"Him?"

Sai Zong pondered for a moment, then said, "He told me he planned to rest for a year. During this year, we would not train, nor march, nor start any war.

He told me to leave the Land of Unceasing, to wander, to see the world, and to return after a year with a response, while he too would leave the Land of Unceasing to see if there were any answers beyond war within his lengthy lifetime."

"And then?"

"And then, I met many people, in countless shapes and forms," Sai Zong exclaimed, "When I laid down the Blade and shifted my focus from the battlefield to the world, I realized that so many years had passed, and humanity had progressed so quickly.

I made many friends, met many Undead, and even invited them to the Land of Unceasing... though the Land of Unceasing isn’t very welcoming to the Undead; in our culture, the warrior’s end is death, the final resting place."

"Yet you and he are Undead," Leviathan stated.

"Yes... no matter how much glory, it requires a recorder," Sai Zong continued recounting that year’s story, "Overall, I had a good year. Initially, it was hard to endure; I couldn’t help but swing my sword, but I ultimately controlled myself. That year, I visited many places, met many people, and what amazed me the most was that I didn’t kill anyone during that year."

"And the reunion after a year?"

"That’s what I’m about to tell you next."

Sai Zong’s tone carried an irreconcilable sadness, "The year-end arrived. I returned to the Land of Unceasing, and others said I seemed different from before, more... more like a living person."

"And him?"

"Him?"

Sai Zong’s gaze turned much dimmer, "He was terrible."

Raising his head to look at the towering gate in front, Sai Zong continued, "After he returned, he shut himself behind this gate, allowing no one to enter. The place emitted a fierce aura, and the sheer intensity of murderous intent alone was enough to tear living beings apart. I ventured in fully armed, expecting dreadful danger and battle, but behind the door was unexpectedly serene, except..."

Sai Zong silently clenched his fist, "Except for the sobs filled with sorrow."

He concluded with a ridiculous laugh, "In the minds of all the creatures in the world, he should be an eternally angry, bloodless, tearless monster. Yet, the terrifying creature that had devoured countless lives was hiding in a corner sobbing. I even thought I was delusional.

But it wasn’t a fantasy. He was truly there, crying endlessly like a child."