Era of Magic and Martial Arts

Chapter 588 - 572: The Caller, the Broom, the Cleansing

You walked in saying you wanted to kill me, then let the monster bite my head, and you call this friendly communication?

Did your dad teach you to be so friendly with people since you were a kid?

[Graveyard Tree] was dumbfounded, unable to find the right words to retort.

Feng Mu, however, didn’t see any problem with it. Although he said he wanted to kill [Graveyard Tree], at least he was open and honest, treating people sincerely without resorting to a sneak attack.

He was upright and frank!

Besides, [Graveyard Tree] fired at him first, yet he didn’t retaliate immediately. His self-defense was very restrained, and he was even willing to have a chat with the other party. Isn’t this a form of friendliness?

In a sense, it’s like granting the other party a few more minutes of life.

Life is so precious, especially for someone about to die. Every extra minute lived should be something they are grateful for, right?

It’s like King Yama orders your death at midnight, but mercifully lets you live until five minutes past midnight. Shouldn’t you be grateful for those extra 300 seconds?

Wouldn’t you say King Yama is extra... friendly to you, while others would be crying their hearts out?

[Graveyard Tree] stared at Feng Mu’s incredibly sincere expression, and it looked like, maybe, he could understand the other’s logic.

There’s a bit of truth to it... what nonsense!

He realized he was utterly wrong. He preconceived that Feng Mu was as crazy as the madman who changed his Destiny. In reality, Feng Mu was a notch crazier than even that madman.

[Graveyard Tree] looked at Feng Mu with a complicated gaze. He regretted it. He shouldn’t have shot at Feng Mu; he should have shot himself instead.

At least the last bullet should be kept for himself.

[Graveyard Tree] sighed and asked helplessly:

"What do you want to talk about?"

Feng Mu smiled:

"Who instructed you to release that report from the Second Prison?"

As Feng Mu spoke, he stretched out two fingers. Liu Yi, being the most attentive, quickly handed him a cigarette and lit it.

Feng Mu took a light puff and then handed it to [Graveyard Tree]. He observed closely and noticed the cigarette box beside the computer was empty.

[Graveyard Tree] had no desire to answer Feng Mu’s question, but his body took the offered cigarette before his mind could decide and took a hard drag.

A cigarette before death beats the pleasure of a god!

At that moment, he genuinely felt the so-called friendliness of Feng Mu!

"No one told me to release it, I wanted to release it myself."

[Graveyard Tree] exhaled a smoke ring, his gaze gradually drifting away in the smoke, as if sinking into memories, calmly saying:

"If you want the world clean, the dirt must first be seen.

Someone has to point at the filth and shout, only then will someone grab a broom to clean it. I just want to be someone who shouts."

Feng Mu observed [Graveyard Tree], a combination of X-ray Insight Lv3 and Dynamic Capture Lv3’s Pupil Power. Calling him a human lie detector is no exaggeration, capable of detecting 99% of lies face-to-face.

Could [Graveyard Tree] be that exception 1%?

Feng Mu thought not, so the other party wasn’t lying. Was the person before him truly an idealist?

To be honest, Feng Mu had been in this world for a few years and had seen many types of people—self-serving, hypocritical, selfish, pathological—but a true idealist was indeed the first.

And it sounded like quite a lofty ideal too, it couldn’t be merely called idealism. It’s more akin to an idealistic... revolutionary?!!

In such a world where even the Sun is obscured and the light is monopolized, can the seeds of ideals still be born?

It truly is...

The smile on Feng Mu’s face slightly faded, and his expression turned unusually solemn:

"The entire world is utterly dirty. Even if you shout until your throat is hoarse, who will hear you? And even if anyone hears your voice, at a glance, most of them are already filthy too."

[Graveyard Tree] paused, genuinely interested in having a conversation with the other party.

This person is not only a madman but also one with logical and insightful thoughts. Most importantly, the questions he asked were very similar to the ones he asked that person back then.

How did that person respond back then?

[Graveyard Tree] pondered for a long time, then answered:

"Have you ever rummaged through a garbage heap? I have. Even in a foul-smelling garbage heap, as long as you persistently search, you can always find something clean and undefiled."

"It might be a hard piece of bread, or it might be a scrap of cloth. Sometimes, just such small things can save a life!"

Feng Mu looked at [Graveyard Tree] without a word.

[Graveyard Tree] saw Feng Mu listening attentively, causing him to feel a bit emotional too.

Initially, he feared being infected by a madman; now he wondered if he could infect the madman instead.

[Graveyard Tree] continued:

"Save one person, then save another. Slowly, there will be more people who shout, and more people who hear the shout will take up a broom. As long as even one more person is reached, you can’t say my shout is useless. You certainly can’t say there is no hope for this world to be cleaned up."

He paused, and then added:

"As long as there is a spark in the dark, there will always be someone drawn to it. In a filthy garbage heap, as long as there’s a clean white spot, there will surely be someone who goes there."

"Like you said, the world is utterly dirty, and most people are dirty too. But even among these dirty people, most would instinctively stand in a slightly cleaner spot, even if it’s only a tiny bit."

The cigarette butt clamped in [Graveyard Tree]’s mouth flickered, its red glow resembling the flame in his words amidst the darkness. He took a last drag, letting the ashen cigarette butt fall between his fingers.

Feng Mu looked deeply at [Graveyard Tree], his eyes showing a complex expression the latter couldn’t understand.

Feng Mu could fully comprehend what [Graveyard Tree] meant to express because the world he came from had also endured endless darkness, only to be reignited by an unbelievable group of people.

But can this world be lit up as well?

If possible, Feng Mu would be pleased to see it happen; if not, Feng Mu wouldn’t care!

After all, he had no sense of identification, belonging, or the urge to save this world.

He never intended to save this world, nor to be some kind of savior or martyr.

His heart was big enough to contain the whole world, yet small enough to hold only one name.

Feng Mu’s thoughts were simple: if the world is black, then he’ll be black; if it’s white, then he’ll turn white. It’s just that simple.

Sadly, the world now is a pitch-black darkness, so...

Feng Mu shook his head and sighed deeply:

"You’re right, so I heard your shout and brought a broom to sweep you away!"

Feng Mu slowly raised his right hand, gently placing his fingers on [Graveyard Tree]’s shoulder:

"Now answer me one last question: who told you about this [Air Tax]?"