CHAPTER 77: | VANITY IS WHEN YOU GIVE UP!

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  Slash! Slash! Slash!

  Dust swirled through the air as my blade cut through it, revealing the desolate land beyond.

  I took my stance, swinging my dual swords in a crude, forceful manner, and grunted.

  Swish! Whoosh!

  The fog of dust dispersed as I swung my dual swords like a club, a moment of pure carelessness.

  "Solia, that's not how you swing!"

  Her master's voice, sharp with frustration, echoed across the land.

  "I've been coaching you for months, but you still haven't grasped the basics. Even a dog would laugh at how incompetent you are, unable to comprehend such a simple guideline."

  Her master, seated on his throne, looked down at her.

  She gazed at him with a deep desire for his guidance, biting her lips and pouting as she swung her sword in a huge arc.

  "But Master."

  She whined.

  "Why not swing it like a club? What use is cutting when I can just bash their heads in?!"

  He simply gazed at her, his expression filled with contempt, the kind of contempt a master feels for a student too dull to grasp the basics.

  He tapped his finger on his throne, pondering whether to continue teaching his incompetent student.

  Time passed.

  Solia had already swung her dual swords one thousand times.

  She stopped and gazed at her master with a mix of excitement and expectation, hoping to be praised.

  But all she saw was disappointment.

  His chin was resting on his palm as he gazed at her, his calm demeanor so profound it couldn't be mistaken for kindness.

  She felt the immense weight of his gaze, a serenity so intense it made her teeth ache as she bit her lip, too foolish to understand her mistake.

  "Solia."

  He said, his voice a low hum.

  "Isn't slashing your dual swords simple enough? Why do you keep mistaking swinging for slashing, or smashing for slashing? Are you dumb, or perhaps you just need to be beaten black and blue to learn?"

  His words were soothing and calm, too tranquil to provoke anger.

  Yet, she shouted in response.

  "Then what do I do, Master?!"

  She screamed.

  "I am nothing but an uneducated woman! What do you expect from me? Tell me!"

  But her master, still seated on his throne, shook his head, gazing at her with a look of pure pity.

  "What a pitiful child you are..."

  He stood, turning his gaze toward the sky.

  The sun's rays revealed his flawless, picturesque face, a beauty so breathtaking it seemed to demand attention.

  Any being, whether a god or goddess, a demon or a devil, would hide in shame, questioning their own beauty that paled beyond comparison.

  His handsomeness alone could topple kingdoms and make all the women in the world weak with desire just from a single glance.

  He descended the stairs.

  His handsome figure, sculpted by an artist who couldn't possibly exist, as he seemed to move with grace beyond any mortal.

  He closed his eyes, and his long eyelashes seemed to scream for attention.

  He opened them and looked at Solia.

  "Do you know why I'm trying to teach you about swordsmanship and not the etiquette of a noble or the history of this dimension?"

  Solia shook her head, blushing at the sight of her master's lips, which shone with a luster like a newly painted car.

  Then, her dainty lips curved into a mischievous smile, confident in her answer.

  "Is it because it's the easiest to teach?"

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  She asked in a cute manner.

  Her master raised a hand and pointed at her sword, smiling a beautiful, in an enigmatic way.

  "No, it isn't because it's the easiest, or because you have the talent for it."

  He replied gently.

  "It's because the Dao of the sword is to cut everything in the world."

  He reached out for an imaginary flower, plucking it and smelling it in a graceful manner.

  Solia was shocked to her core by the display.

  "How beautiful..."

  She couldn't help but mutter.

  Her master half-opened his left eye, gazing at her with serenity, and then pointed to the sword's edge.

  "Then tell me."

  He said softly.

  "What is the purpose of the sword in your hand?"

  Solia pondered for a while, recalling a conversation she had with the previous Chief Terror.

  A smile bloomed on her face.

  "Master, the greatest swordsman of the Titans said that a sword must be wielded to protect those who are precious to us. And I agree with his words."

  Solia smiled in triumph, slicing the wind before smashing her dual swords into the air.

  The sound itself broke from the sheer force of her strength.

  "Master, I know how to differentiate cutting from slashing and smashing, but what I can't understand is why we must use a sword to kill. Isn't it crude to rely on a weapon to take a life?"

  Her questions carried a wisdom that contrasted with the endless annoyance she had caused him for months.

  Her master, however, simply shook his head.

  He looked at the sky, then closed his eyes, reminiscing about the past.

  He extended his hand and gripped the air, a sword made of dust appeared in his grasp, and he smiled.

  "You are correct about that."

  He said.

  "The Dao of the sword differs for each person. We, the sentient, that pursue the sword, create our own unique Dao, derived from the Sword Dao."

  He smiled charmingly, sweeping his sword in a wide arc.

  He stopped midway, yet a perfectly straight line of dust still sliced from the left end of the floating island to the right.

  "But look, Solia."

  He continued, as the line dissipated.

  "Do we, the sentient, follow the rules created by the Supreme Heavenly Dao?"

  Solia shook her head, closing her eyes as she calmly muttered.

  "No, Master, we don't. Since we are sentient beings, we are greedy, sinful enough to defy the Supreme Heavenly Dao and create our own variations. Even if we learn the same technique, the same Dao, a difference will always be there, for we gain a different enlightenment that we apply to our logics."

  Solia smiled bitterly, biting her lips.

  She looked at the sky in resignation, knowing she couldn't blame the Supreme Heavenly Dao, yet she still voiced her opinions.

  "Master."

  She demanded, her voice thick with emotion.

  "The heavens know that we embark on a journey for immortality. We kill for it, we suppress for it. So why? Why does it just sit there and let it happen?"

  She was curious, curious about why the heavens simply sat and watched those who embarked on the path of immortality.

  Solia, a mere illiterate woman, couldn't dare to peer into the heavens' intentions.

  She chuckled at her own audacity.

  "Master, look at me!"

  She screamed, tears streaming down her face.

  "Aren't I pitiful? Pitiful enough for the heavens to sympathize? To mock my powerlessness? To force me to follow the command of the Devil, who ordered me to kill my own family? Tell me, isn't my fate a joke?!"

  She cried, still unable to move past the death of her family, even after I'd comforted her for days.

  I walked towards her, each step bringing me closer.

  She was breaking down, consumed by the guilt and pain eating away at her.

  "Then I will tell you."

  I said, a bitter smile on my face.

  "They conspired for my demise. They forced me to do the unthinkable, they made me kill the innocent bystanders, and finally brought judgment to my already broken self. I was pitiful, but only they understood me. But did I understand them? No... I didn't..."

  I smiled, then bit my lip, my face still twisted into a warm smile as I whispered in her ear.

  "Because I couldn't understand them, Solia..."

  Solia pushed me away, backing away with fear.

  She was creeped out by the self I had become, chuckling and laughing with insanity.

  All she could think was, Get away from this insane guy.

  The dread of being associated with a person whose mental health was beyond saving was palpable.

  She tried to mutter a word, but her voice was stuck.

  She couldn't speak or scream, knowing that if she did, her life would end in a second.

  She gulped the saliva stuck in her throat, her gaze fixed on me as I continued to cackle and laugh.

  She forced a smile.

  "My, it seems I've caused quite a scene. Don't you think so, Solia?"

  I asked, a warm smile still on my face.

  Solia nodded her head violently, her face a mask of gloom as she gazed at me nervously.

  "You jest, Master?"

  She asked.

  I smiled at her and clapped my hands.

  Her nervousness vanished, taken aback by the sudden sound.

  "So, have you found the answer yet?"

  I prompted.

  Solia smiled softly and closed her eyes, breathing a sigh of relief after escaping that suffocating atmosphere.

  Fearful yet confident, she finally spoke.

  "Master, although I've understood what you're trying to convey, still it seems that there's something that I can't understand. Why must we walk a different path when I could just follow the one you've already pioneered? Why waste time and effort when it's futile?"

  I gazed at her, sighing at her 'smart' words.

  Why create something new when you could just follow?

  I thought to myself.

  'Solia, you're truly a dumb sheep that never learns, why follow the herd? When you know that its a dead end?'

  Do you truly not know such a simple fact?

  'It was ridiculous that, with all her talent and genius, she still couldn't understand what I conveyed. Was it a difference in mindset? Or perhaps something deeper?'

  It was pitiful, truly pitiful.

  Why follow when you could create something new with the imagination given to you by the Supreme Mother?

  Was it vanity to believe your path was the best because you pioneered it alone?

  No.

  There is no such thing as vanity in this pursuit.

  The true vanity is stopping your ambition and cowering in fear of the unknown.

  The ignorant use the word to mock you, calling it vanity to make you prove that you're the best, when the vanity itself is in their own complacency.

  You must strive for perfection, it isn't vanity, but completion.

  It was laughable.

  What I've pursued isn't vanity, it's the truth itself.

  Call me arrogant, conceited, or self-centered for thinking I'm the Dimensional Villain who will reach 'Ascendance,' even though I've already failed billions of times.

  But did I fail?

  No, I didn't.

  It was already expected.

  'I had already expected this to happen, so how could it be in vain? How could my effort be for nothing? Only a fool would think it has already failed because it was rejected once or twice.'

  'Failure itself doesn't exist for us.'

  I smiled and then gazed at her.

  "My cute and lovely apostle."

  I said.

  "Why do you think it's vain when you haven't even tried? Why do you want to follow my footsteps when it's shameful to follow the footsteps of others? Vanity only exists when you've decided to stop. So don't take your path lightly. Fate is in your hands."

  Solia, seemingly enlightened, closed her eyes and repeatedly muttered to herself.

  "Vanity is when you stop. Vanity is when you stop."

  She then chuckled and bowed deeply.

  "Thank you, Teacher, for your teachings."

  I smiled, then gazed above, shaking my head.

  "Transport us to the next segment."

  I muttered.

  Maybe give it a try? ??