The old man chuckled at himself for making such a silly promise to the heavens.
Well, when one was as old as he was and so close to death, one could make that sort of promise without worrying about the consequences.
His precious, beautiful granddaughter, of incomparable talent, betrothed to some young outer disciple of the sect.
As if that were ever going to happen.
His family even wanted him, instead of accepting death, to allow himself to be imprisoned in a spiritual array capable of keeping his soul alive for as long as the Ma family lasted, so that he could continue teaching the younger generations and guiding their steps.
He detested that idea.
When his time came, he planned to throw himself at the many enemies of the Ma family, taking as many of them with him as possible before exploding, or perhaps throwing himself into a sea of beasts.
