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　　TL: Zhao

　　Editing: Krisaia

　　"But sometimes there is someone who behaves without righteousness, and moves against rationality, who mistakes evil for ability, and inflicts injury on others, who exercises power but not compa.s.sion, who is cruel, irrational, and self-willed, who does not distinguish right from wrong, and turns his back on those whom he should befriend, who has no feeling for favors received, but is tireless in remembering resentment…" Li Yiming recited a verse from the Tractate of the Most High One on Actions and Consequences.

　　Li Yiming wandered through the streets, until he reached the entrance to an office building. He went up the stairs all the way to the rooftop. As he gazed at the city below him painted with a myriad of colorful lights, he was reminded of that time where he stood on the same rooftop over a year ago, when he was at his lowest point in life.

　　'The rules of this world…' Li Yiming chuckled at Mr. Kong's words. He crossed over the protective fence and sat at the edge of the roof with his feet dangling in the air.

　　'The last time I was here because of love… And now I'm here because I question the path I have chosen to walk down in life…' Li Yiming began to question his own beliefs. He remembered hearing Bai Ze's judgment on human nature. Although he did not refute her statement at that time, he did not agree with her.

　　Growing up, Li Yiming had put his trust in the goodness of others. The world was rife with kind people, and it was natural for those more privileged to show compa.s.sion for the less fortunate. These beliefs motivated his positive, uplooking att.i.tude, and he still believed in them even after becoming a guardian.

　　However, Li Yiming's firm beliefs were now shaken. He could no longer tell whether the so-called "goodness" was some kind of social construct, or worse, merely propaganda spread by the rich and powerful to keep the poor and miserable from seeing the dire truth.

　　'Helping the elderly turns into a scam… Perhaps it's better to be completely selfish? What of grat.i.tude? What of all the things I've been taught? Were they all lies?'

　　Despite being forced to do Heaven's Laws' biddings, Li Yiming obeyed what he believed were higher principles. When confronted with ma.s.sacring innocents or defying the Heavens, he chose the latter. However, after witnessing the ramifications of the collapse of Heaven's Laws, and the freedom that the guardians had gained as a result, a seed of doubt had been planted within his heart.

　　From his perch, Li Yimig could observe nearly the entire city in minute details. Far away, he saw a racily-dressed woman stripping off her clothes, revealing her b.r.e.a.s.t.s in front of many cameras flashes. Between them hung a jade pendant which was likely the subject for some kind of erotic commercial.

　　In another corner of the city, a man walked out of a Mahjong casino with a flushed face. After feeling his overly-thick wallet, he put his hands together and prayed to the sky, showing his grat.i.tude for fortune favoring him on that day.

　　'Pointing at heaven or earth that they may witness their evil designs, and calling upon spirits to witness their degrading deeds…' Li Yiming closed his eyes, but he could not close his heart to the sinful acts he saw.