Chapter 601: Departure

In the desolate world of death, amidst dust and storms, Li Qi and Shen Shuibi sat together, leaning on each other.

Shen Shuibi quietly listened to Li Qi's plan, committing it to memory.

Actually, there were only two main difficulties.

First, the situation was indeed arduous; Humanity had dismantled almost all worlds, meaning it would be very difficult to get supplies there. Humanity's actions were nothing short of scorched earth tactics.

And because Li Qi could not possibly send logistical support to Humanity's side, all supplies, combat losses, and healing would have to be handled by themselves, all while avoiding Humanity's sight.

This was the pressure on logistics.

Second, there was the pressure Shen Shuibi had to face alone.

Could the People of No Return truly be trusted?

That was a big question mark. Did Humanity truly not know about the People of No Return? Li Qi felt it definitely couldn't be hidden; Humanity simply didn't care.

But if the People of No Return wanted to cause destruction, Humanity would certainly react.

It would be impossible to encircle and annihilate such a loose organization. Once they tried to encircle, the strategy would already be highly effective, and Humanity's high-level combat forces would have already chosen to return to defense.

However, inserting a spy was not that difficult.

There were plenty of people willing to work for Humanity, even if their worlds had been destroyed by Humanity. But destruction was destruction; for those lone wanderers, what did the destruction of civilization have to do with them?

Perhaps they didn't even know anyone to begin with. So what if the world was destroyed? They had long since left civilization and ventured into the outer Void Realm to pursue the Dao.

As a result, the People of No Return inherently harbored distrust and could easily fall apart, potentially betraying them at a critical juncture.

Therefore, when Shen Shuibi went there, she would have to organize guerrilla warfare while guarding against internal betrayal, bring her own dry rations throughout, procure her own supplies, and ultimately force Humanity to return to defense.

To be honest, this was truly difficult, absurdly difficult.

So, Li Qi repeatedly considered many candidates: some lacked the strength to command the People of No Return, others lacked the wisdom to identify traitors, or their abilities were insufficient to force Humanity to return to defense.

In any case, after careful consideration, there was only one conclusion.

Only if Shen Shuibi went could success be guaranteed; otherwise, sending others would be tantamount to sending those truly seeking revenge among the People of No Return to their deaths.

Sending someone incompetent would surely lead to heavy casualties for the People of No Return, ultimately failing to achieve the goal and only leading to their futile annihilation.

Li Qi only had one People of No Return, so he also only had one chance to force Humanity to return to defense. Li Qi didn't have a second chance to try.

He couldn't organize a second People of No Return.

"En, I understand what you mean," Shen Shuibi said with a smile. "I also feel that this matter must be done by me. You see, the regular army promised by Shaman Dao hasn't arrived yet, which means they might have been intercepted halfway."

"We really don't have many chances left. This move is a very good idea."

the little rabbit said so.

This also made Li Qi sigh.

Yes, Zhu Fengdan had said from the beginning that Shaman Dao would send a regular army to help Li Qi offset Humanity's current advantage in troop quality.

But they hadn't arrived yet, and there was no definite news from above.

To be honest, if there was an army that could directly withstand Humanity's army of around Fifth Rank, Li Qi wouldn't be so stretched and disheveled.

There must be something fishy going on. Perhaps Humanity had already intercepted these reinforcements halfway.

Li Qi couldn't rely on these so-called 'regular armies' anymore. This war had progressed to a point where he could only rely on himself and couldn't pin his hopes on reinforcements.

Even if there were reinforcements, he didn't know where they would come from or when they would arrive. It was too unreliable.

"You can understand... that's good," Li Qi sighed.

Although he knew he had to take responsibility for his actions, because this was his Dao, his 'Righteousness,' the thought of Shen Shuibi going deep behind enemy lines still made him sigh repeatedly and feel conflicted.

"What do you mean, understand? Of course I can understand. It's better that you can figure it out. This method is indeed useful, much better than me constantly running around on the front lines," Shen Shuibi immediately said. She didn't seem nervous at all.

After all, any move that could win was a good move.

Before, as the strongest combat force on Li Qi's side, she had to constantly rush around, being led by Humanity like a dog, fighting here then there. It was all feints to lure her away, futilely rushing to one battlefield, then another, yet doing nothing to benefit the overall situation, only occasionally saving some local battlefields.

But the number she saved was too small. Even with her Clone ability, facing such a vast battlefield, she was ultimately outmatched.

Humanity knew her capabilities, so they constantly used various means to lead her around, refusing any form of decisive battle, preventing her from truly impacting the battlefield much.

Therefore, Shen Shuibi was rather happy to be able to escape this quagmire of attrition and instead do something truly beneficial for victory.

As for danger?

Her coming to the front lines was the greatest danger. Since she was already here, what more could be said about danger?

Her thoughts were much purer than Li Qi's.

Even Li Qi knew 'this is what I should do,' and the little rabbit had told Li Qi over four hundred years ago: "Since you're going to do it, then do it. Don't hesitate."

Since it was going to be done, why care about the consequences? Was it because of consequences that one wouldn't do it?

Right? After hesitating for a long time, she still had to go.

It was better to face it calmly and die without regret.

Shen Shuibi had always been like this. The only thing she had ever hesitated about in her life was probably that one time when she was conflicted between Li Qi and Mount Luofu.

And it only lasted a few days. Soon, she realized that the two could be unified, and then happily followed Li Qi, went to Chang'an, and even gave herself to him on the way.

She was always very decisive. Her gentle and weak appearance was just a facade. Although she was calm and quiet, she was not soft-hearted. In her ferocious the little rabbit form, she could kill without batting an eye.

For her, killing was like eating and drinking, with no difference.

Because she practiced Bigu, she didn't need to eat, so eating and killing were both things that could be done or not done. She usually didn't do them simply because there was no need. If there was a need, or if the mood struck her, she could do them, and she wouldn't have any psychological burden as a result.

Seeing Shen Shuibi's calm demeanor, Li Qi, on the contrary, became less confident. He sighed again, "Alright, then let's settle it."

"Mm~." Shen Shuibi became happy, so she leaned on Li Qi: "These things don't need to be said in person. You made me come back specifically to say it, were you missing me?"

"No..." Li Qi subconsciously replied, then realized something, and then smiled bitterly, changing his words: "Alright, yes, I just wanted to see you."

"Mm-hmm, I knew it." the little rabbit rubbed against Li Qi: "Then I'll stay here for a few more days. Anyway, there's no hurry to rush over. During this time, you can have the People of No Return prepare."

"Okay." Li Qi nodded.

As things stood, Li Qi had become the silent one.

One should know that hundreds of years ago, when Li Qi was still at Ninth Rank, Shen Shuibi was the one who spoke little, and Li Qi spent all day trying to get her to say a few more words to him. He never expected that their roles would be reversed now.

Li Qi was full of worry, but the little rabbit was by his side, coaxing him to be happy and telling him to lighten up.

Even though war was imminent, she still poked Li Qi's face, smiling broadly.

So, as Li Qi looked at her smiling face, his heart tightened again.

Because, in fact, the little rabbit usually didn't smile much. Even if she did, it was a very light, reserved smile. Her public image had always been one of being dazed, or rather, aloof.

the little rabbit rested her chin on Li Qi's shoulder and said, "Think about it, after this war, Mother will be completely free, and the Sect Master will also awaken. The revival of Mount Luofu will be just around the corner, and you and I will have no more worries. The next thousand, ten thousand, hundred thousand years will be just like the past four hundred years."

"What if we lose?" Li Qi asked.

"Hmm... if we lose, the Sect Master will die, and Mother might not be able to be protected. So... you must win," Shen Shuibi said, looking at Li Qi.

Li Qi didn't speak, he just looked up.

Yes, he had to win.

If he won, Mount Luofu would be restored, and Shaman God Mountain would obtain the Dao opportunity, a win-win situation. He would then have no more worries, and from then on, it would be a smooth path, with only the slow cultivation remaining.

He had endless time to cultivate. From then on, Li Qi would become one of the most comfortable living people in all the Heavens and Myriad Worlds.

But if he lost...

The death of the Sun-Moon True Lead Cauldron and the destruction of Mount Luofu were certain. Shaman God Mountain would also suffer heavy losses, and Humanity would obtain the Dao opportunity.

If Li Qi was lucky enough to die, nothing would happen, but if he was unlucky and survived to the end, he would bear a heavy burden, and all his 'freedom' would vanish without a trace.

Li Qi held Shen Shuibi's hand and said, "We will win."

"Mm, I believe you, always have," the little rabbit smiled. "So, I'll do everything I need to do. We just need to do things."

But as she said this, she interrupted herself and then abruptly changed the subject, saying, "Let's not talk about this. Oh, right, what do you think Shi Wei will encounter in the Buddhist Kingdom?"

"Shi Wei in the Buddhist Kingdom? Hmm... I guess nothing good will happen. To be honest, I always feel that those bald monks aren't good people, even though they act quite openly and righteously, I just have a premonition," Li Qi replied, stroking his chin.

"Those who Dual Cultivate Buddha-Dharma and Demonic Dao aren't good people, right? Among the Demonic Dao, these are also considered petty villains. They don't have the unrestrained nature of the Demonic Dao; they merely use Buddha-Dharma to conceal their true nature as Demonic Overlords. They refuse to recognize themselves and are all just pawns of the Heavenly Demon," Shen Shuibi guessed.

"That's possible, but after all, it's the world. Shi Wei shouldn't have any problems. It can be considered a test. Don't worry, she's grown up too," Li Qi replied.

"That's true, but recently..." Then, Shen Shuibi drew circles on Li Qi's neck with her finger, talking about trivial everyday matters.

As they talked, time slowly passed.

Two days later, Shen Shuibi bid farewell to Li Qi and set off into the starry Void Realm.

She would head to the areas controlled by Humanity, negotiate with the People of No Return, and then lead them to cause trouble behind Humanity's lines, forcing Humanity's high-level combat forces to return to defense.

——————

Floating in the Void Realm, the little rabbit lightly Transmigrated through the band of light.

The change in the Dao caused her Inner World to slightly lag. She adjusted the operation of her cultivation method to adapt to this strange environment.

Actually, the change wasn't significant, but even a slight alteration was enough to cause the world barriers of many worlds to collapse.

"Hmm... This is, the rate of Qi combination was adjusted, causing the world barrier's combination to delay by three milliseconds. These three milliseconds caused the world barrier's operation to lag, ultimately leading to its self-destruction," Shen Shuibi sensed the Dao constraints around her; it was roughly like that.

This kind of change shouldn't be permanent.

The Universe has its own Dao, and this Dao tries to ensure that the Universe is isotropic.

Isotropy means that the properties of matter, physical rules, mathematical characteristics, etc., of the Universe do not change with position. Theoretically, if undisturbed, in any part of the Universe, the various values measured in different directions are completely identical and do not change with the direction of measurement.

For example, the Heavenly Dao limit of speed is a typical example.

However, the outer Void Realm is too vast, and the restraining power of this Dao is not as strong in some specific places, making it easily altered. This also led to the most common method of travel in the outer Void Realm: increasing the Heavenly Dao limit to accelerate oneself.

This change would not be permanent. As long as there was no external interference, it would gradually return to its original form under the regulation of the Universe's own Dao, just as ripples on the water, no matter how violent, would eventually smooth out and return to calmness.

Moreover, Humanity only made this change for a fleeting moment; they didn't exert any more force afterward.

It's just that... the scope of Humanity's change this time was too vast, and the light band cut off too much area. Such a violent disturbance would require more time to settle down.

"This time, it's probably..." Shen Shuibi began to calculate in her mind.

However, unlike Li Qi, who relied solely on his own mental power for calculations, she lightly flicked her fingers twice, and the space began to fill with Yin and Yang trigrams, which she started to manipulate as if moving abacus beads.

Yin, Yang, and the combination of Yin and Yang formed sets of self-circulating logical chains, used to represent different information.

In just a few seconds, she reached a conclusion.

This time would be approximately fifteen years. The Universe's Dao would need fifteen years to heal the tear caused by Humanity.

In other words, Humanity believed that fifteen years would be enough for the war to determine a victor?

She didn't know, but she could make a small guess.

Anyway, there was nothing else to do while traveling.

Thinking this, Shen Shuibi traveled for several days.

Then, she slowed down.

The stronghold of the People of No Return had been reached.