"If you had to sum up your life and leave a few words carved on the stone marking your final resting place, what would you write?"
Sunday slowly walked over and stopped beside Caelus, who stood before the grave.
This was Cerydra's true resting place, the finest location her teacher had chosen for his student.
"I don't think I'd leave anything behind. Just as I came from nothing, death is simply a return to that place where nothing exists."
Hearing Caelus's answer, Sunday looked at the grave as well. The stone marker was similarly blank.
"It seems the two of you really are alike as teacher and student. Neither of you wanted to leave behind an epitaph for others to remember you by. This grave doesn't even say who is buried here."
"She once said that if the alternative was being defined by others, she would rather be forgotten. She only wanted people to remember the real her, the whole of who she was, rather than some incomplete image preserved in history books and scattered records."
"That is quite a free spirit. When my own life eventually reaches its end and the time comes to leave an epitaph behind, I don't think I would choose to leave nothing at all.
"I would probably write something encouraging others to keep moving forward and search for their own direction. It might sound like an old man offering advice to those who come after him, but I would still hope it could help someone, even just a little."
"Then you'd be better off writing a book. Experience all kinds of things, see different sights, meet different people, taste different foods, and then gather everything you come to understand into a book and share it with others. It may not have much effect, but if it can save even one person, that would already be worthwhile."
"That's a very good suggestion. Once I've experienced enough on this journey, I'll try putting together a manuscript of my own."
Caelus took a bottle of wine from his pocket. It was a secret vintage even Fagaina had coveted, the finest alcohol on this land, potent enough to intoxicate even a Titan. While she was alive, Cerydra had always been diligent and disciplined, never allowing herself to indulge. Even when she drank, she chose mild wines that gave only a faint buzz and were difficult to become truly drunk on.
But now she had finished all of her duties and could finally rest. There was no harm in letting her have a cup of something stronger.
Caelus poured the wine onto the ground, using it both to mark the end of this cycle and to mourn his first student.
"She was an exceptionally capable ruler and a true seeker of Order. I think her final choice, accepting death rather than extending her life, aligned very closely with Ena's original ideals. She already satisfies your requirements extremely well.
"That means we now have three pieces of the puzzle. Which one are you going after next?"
The pieces they had already secured were Order, represented by Cerydra and gathered throughout this cycle, as well as Nihility, represented by Caelus himself, and Remembrance, represented by Cyrene.
Among the other twelve simulated Paths, Lygus had already said that he intended to participate in one of the cycles and become Anaxa's teacher, helping cultivate the Path of Erudition.
Of course, this did not mean the mastermind behind Amphoreus had suddenly turned over a new leaf. Fundamentally, he simply wanted to cause trouble for Nous, which was precisely why he had agreed to do it.
As for Destruction, there was no need to lure it here at all. The moment Caelus unleashed the power of Creation and used the remaining authority of the Command Block, Nanook would personally intervene. When that happened, Phainon's fury would also receive recognition.
Preservation would come later. Caelus planned to borrow Aventurine's Cornerstone and use the fragment of power originating from an Emanator of Preservation to establish direct contact with Qlipoth, hopefully getting that perpetually wall-building Aeon to finally turn THEIR attention elsewhere.
"That leaves only the Hunt and Permanence for me. I've already entrusted Beauty to someone else.
"There's no need to worry about Elation either. With something this entertaining happening, Aha will absolutely find a way to get involved.
"Equilibrium will certainly appear as well. Creation and Destruction are opposing forces that must remain balanced, and their relationship within the universe will need to be stabilized and reinforced again. HooH will definitely show up.
"So the only Path fragments still unresolved are the Hunt, Harmony, Beauty, and finally Permanence."
"Leave Harmony to me," Sunday said. "Although I once walked the Path of Order, I still have some understanding of Harmony. More importantly, Miss Trisidios's desire to bring salvation to all living beings is similar in certain ways to the road I'm walking now. I believe we'll have quite a lot to discuss."
"Then I'll leave that to you."
"As for the Hunt and Permanence, I actually have a suggestion."
A familiar voice suddenly sounded nearby. Lygus appeared from seemingly nowhere and approached the two of them. After politely greeting them, he continued.
"It is common knowledge throughout the universe that the Hunt eternally pursues the Abundance. Meanwhile, among the concepts that split away from Permanence are principles that overlap with Abundance. So we could try making use of the Abundance directly. Lan's response might be somewhat violent, but it would almost certainly work."
"Wouldn't that be too extreme?" Sunday asked. "I know Caelus carries two blessings of Abundance. With your assistance, Mr. Lygus, it really might be possible to draw Yaoshi's attention here. Even a personal manifestation would not be impossible.
"But that would also mean Amphoreus might have to face Lan's arrow directly."
"That is why I'm only offering a suggestion. Amphoreus's complete data has already been backed up, hasn't it? Even if this world suffers a fatal attack, it would simply mean Irontomb's destruction happens a little earlier than expected."
Lygus showed no concern whatsoever over the possibility that Irontomb, the project he had spent who knew how long working on, might be destroyed because of this. They were already preparing for a war between Aeons. Compared with that, this experiment was far more interesting than an Anti-Life Equation whose failure had already been conclusively established.
"I'll deal with Permanence first. As for Abundance and the Hunt, we'll leave that aside for now. I need more time to think."
Caelus's original plan had been similar to what he had done with Cerydra. He would enter a cycle where Mydei was still young, become his teacher, and raise him into a wandering hero who fought for fairness and justice.
There was nothing particularly wrong with the plan itself. Although Mydei was normally the king of Castrum Kremnos, there were also cycles in which his father abandoned him when he was still a child, forcing him to wander and grow up on his own.
During those early years, when his personality was still almost a blank slate, raising him into a wandering warrior who fought for justice and fairness would not be especially difficult. The problem was that such an upbringing alone would not turn his pursuit of those ideals into an obsession.
And without that level of fixation, drawing Lan's attention would be extremely difficult.
But if they used the Hunt's mortal enemy, the Abundance, as bait, attracting that attention would become far easier.
They only needed to draw Yaoshi's gaze and make THEM appear here for a brief moment.
Lan would inevitably follow.
Caelus temporarily set the matter aside.
For now, he needed to make a trip to the Xianzhou Luofu.
(To be continued.)
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◇ You can read the ahead chapter on Pat if you're interested: p-atreon.c-om/Blownleaves (Just remove the hyphen to access normally.)