Volume 6 Chapter 35 The Meaning Of Longevity
'He is a living corpse who has lost his will ——a remnant of the old world's death.'
Yotsuji said so.
What does that mean?
'Living corpse, are you trying to say that's a zombie?'
Could it be that I unknowingly entered the world of Resident Evil? Or is it that someone like a necromancer is controlling Shikin?
No, that's not it.
If he were being controlled by something, there should be a connection to magic power, but I don't sense that in Shikin.
'He's not a zombie. He has undoubtedly lived for a thousand years. I told you, he is a remnant of death.'
'That's contradictory.'
A corpse, yet not dead. Sorry, but I can't afford to play word games in this situation.
'Sorry, sorry. 'Corpse' is just a figure of speech. But according to your standards, he is like someone who is dead.'
'..Tell me the conclusion. Time is running out.'
I'm not thinking clearly because I've lost too much blood.
What exactly is his criteria? Maybe she's referring to the people of Asteris, but the criteria for death doesn't really change even in a different world.
'Shikin's magic is out of the ordinary even by our standards. If there is a possibility, it would either be something non-human or operating under a different principle.'
'So, what does that mean?'
'That magic is not from Earth. It's a magic system from a different world, just like yours.'
Yotsuji stated it that way.
Certainly, such unreasonable power is not unimaginable with Asteris's magic.
However, there is a feeling of inconsistency in that.
"I can't sense any soul presence from him. If he were a magician of Asteris with that much power, that should definitely be there."
Even to my rebuttal, Yotsuji calmly responded.
'That's true. It would be more troublesome if it weren't the case. The magic he's currently using is from a different world, but the foundation is different. The underlying principle of Shikin's ideology is the Daoist (Tao/Dokyou) concept of "Way of the Immortals".'
'"Way of the Immortals"... like a hermit (Sennin)?'
'Yes, that's not wrong. As you said, there might not be a way to stack lives, but there is a way to prolong life in the Daoist concept.'
I see. If that's the case, it makes sense that Shikin is long-lived. So why hasn't he died? In fact, it's been successful.
'However, there is a problem there. It is said that Sennin can also become long-lived and gain supernatural powers such as mind reading and physical transformation. But, he shouldn't have such ridiculous powers. 'Mukyuuren' is completely unrelated to Sennin.'
'Indeed, I have heard that Sun Wukong is also one of the sennins."
In most works of fiction, sennin are usually portrayed as powerful. However, Yotsuji immediately denied that.
'That is fiction. First of all, Sun Wukong is not even human. Longevity in "Way of the Immortals" is not for the purpose of becoming stronger. In fact, longevity itself is not even the goal.'
'What do you mean?'
'Longevity in "Way of the Immortals" is a means to achieve 'Enlightenment of the Emptiness.''
...Wait a minute.
Anyway, my head is not working properly, or rather, words that I don't understand often come up.
What is 'Enlightenment of the Emptiness'?
I don't understand even if she throw around specialized terms. Maybe someone didn't teach her in a way that anyone can understand.
I don't know if Yotsuji sensed my dissatisfaction, but she quickly added,
'To put it simply, 'Enlightenment of the Emptiness' is about escaping the fear of death and entering a super-dimensional world. Death is not salvation, but suffering itself. In order to escape from there, one must reach the boundary of enlightenment of the emptiness that transcends life and death. In order to train for that, it was necessary to live a long life.'
'‥‥'
Ah, I somehow understand what she wants to say.
In other words, Shikin became long-lived in order to reach the 'Enlightenment of the Emptiness.'
'So, he awakened to 'Mukyuuren (Infinite Forge)' after mastering the "Way of the Immortals"?'
"That's impossible."
Yotsuji firmly denied with strong words.
Why is that?
'Yuusuke, you listened to me. Shikin's purpose is to be of help to his Master. His purpose is no longer to reach the 'Enlightenment of the Emptiness.' It is an extraordinary technique that can live for a thousand years. It's not something that can be easily maintained by changing the purpose.'
'But he is managing to do both.'
It's not a matter of whether it's possible or not, it's a reality that is right in front of us.
No matter how unreasonable it may be, we cannot move forward unless we accept it.
'That's what's important.'
She said with a confident tone.
'The 'Way of the Immortals' to the 'Enlightenment of the Emptiness.' 'Mukyuuren (infinite forge)' that uses all training as its own power. The method of reconciling two things that cannot be reconciled is the strength of Shikin, and it becomes a weakness — or so it should be."
The last part is unreliable.
But well, I understand what she wants to say.
'So, what should I do?'
'Huh, do you believe me?'
What are you talking about?
You must have told me because there is a solution.
'The first thing I asked for.'
'But it's mostly speculation, and it might be meaningless.'
'That's something for when it happens. We won't know unless we try.'
'Yeah, that might be true, but...'
Yotsuji hesitated to say anything because I am being defeated by Shikin. Even though they trusted me and asked for this request, I made them feel uncertain.
It's a shameful story.
I repositioned my bastard sword and looked at Shikin, who was looking at me with a confident face.
'Don't worry. I won't lose anymore. Even if Yotsuji's plan ends in failure, I will definitely fulfill the request from Tsuchimikado.'
So, please believe me.
'...Alright then, if that's the case, I want you to create an opportunity for me to get closer to Shikin.'
'Understood.'
I nodded at Yotsuji's words. It's pointless for me to ask what will happen when I approach and what the result will be.
If there is a possibility, it wouldn't hurt to bet on it.
"Is the conversation over?"
"'Sorry for keeping you waiting.'"
Shikin said that while stretching his body.
He should have known that I was planning something.
He either didn't try to stop it for training purposes or simply didn't feel the need to stop it.
I circulated my magic power and gathered strength in my knees.
Now, let's counterattack.
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