CH 129 The Struggle Of Humanity, The Authority Of Heaven

Kun-Lai Mountain, Zhaoyue Peak.  

After teasing Xiao Qing, Ji Yunlai brought Luo Chi over.  

“You can see fortune, so you should also understand the art of celestial divination, correct?” Ji Yunlai asked.  

“A bit,” Luo Chi, the great treasure-seeking rat, replied somewhat nervously. His cheeks flushed slightly. Born with a heavenly eye, he was an extraordinary talent suited to cultivating Taiqing Sect's True Explanation of the Great Profound Seeing of the Divine. However, not only had the sect's ancient Human Immortal personally captured him, but he had also offered significant benefits to persuade his grandmother to allow him to study their cultivation method. Even so, his family insisted he remain loyal to Jietian Dao while dabbling in external teachings.  

“Explain it to me,” Ji Yunlai said coolly.  

This wasn’t an issue. Luo Chi rarely got the chance to speak directly with the Xing Dao Master. Since what he had learned was mainly from the Taiqing Sect, sharing it wouldn’t affect his family’s allegiance.  

*

He talked for three days and four nights. By the end, even someone with Luo Chi’s cultivation level was parched.  

“Then let me try. Can you pinpoint this person’s exact location?” Ji Yunlai’s interest grew when he heard Luo Chi say that advanced celestial divination could easily locate people of similar cultivation—a skill even he lacked. It seemed Luo Chi truly possessed exceptional abilities. No wonder the Taiqing Sect went to such lengths to secure him. Ji Yunlai stretched out his hand, retrieving a strand of Yang Fuyin’s hair from Taiyi Peak, thousands of miles away.  

“I’ll try. Last time I was caught, my thousand-year-old tortoiseshell was confiscated,” Luo Chi said cautiously, pulling out a few ancient copper coins that bore signs of frequent use.  

Ji Yunlai thought for a moment before reaching into the air and pulling out a tortoiseshell. “Use this.”  

Luo Chi hesitated, blushing as he accepted it. Being an expert in tortoiseshells, he was stunned the moment he touched it. “Heavens! This... this tortoiseshell… it must be at least a hundred thousand years old! How is this possible?”  

A hundred thousand years—surely it belonged to a Great Sage. How could it be so casually handed over?  

Ji Yunlai said indifferently, “I borrowed it. Use it. I’ll return it later.”  

He just hadn’t informed the old tortoise about borrowing it yet.  

Luo Chi trembled slightly but still focused on the task. After performing intricate calculations, his forehead split open, revealing a cold golden eye that carefully examined the tortoiseshell. Moments later, information poured into his mind.  

“The owner of this strand of hair is near the Eye of the South Sea, close to the Empty Void. Though in peril, they will survive. However, they seem entangled in trouble and unable to escape,” Luo Chi reported seriously.  

“Thank you. You’ve done well.” Ji Yunlai analyzed for a moment and found that Luo Chi’s information was 90% accurate. He patted Luo Chi on the shoulder, impressed. Luo Chi’s value was becoming clear—returning him was no longer an option.  

Being praised, Luo Chi’s heart pounded like a drum. He was elated but couldn’t help noticing something strange: the apprentice standing beside the Xing Dao Master seemed very unhappy. 

Also was it his imagination, or were their fortunes so intertwined that they couldn’t be separated?  

As these thoughts swirled, Luo Chi reluctantly handed the tortoiseshell back. He truly didn’t want to let it go—it was the finest treasure he had ever touched. “Could I borrow this for a few days?” he asked hopefully.  

“Ask him,” Ji Yunlai said with a wave of his hand. In a blink, Luo Chi found himself standing before a massive cloud tortoise… without its shell.  

The tortoise, scarred and burned, gazed despondently at the sky. When its enormous eye shifted to Luo Chi, who was clutching the shell, he froze in place.  

*

Beneath the Nine Abyss 

A silent stream flowed slowly along its banks.  

The water was murky and yellowish, while the skies on both sides displayed an eerie sun and moon simultaneously. The light from this shore seemed unable to reach the far bank.  

Under the sunlight, the riverbanks of this shore were overgrown with wild grass. On the far bank, countless flowers bloomed without roots or leaves. Occasionally, a petal would drift into the river, only to dissolve instantly without a trace.  

A man in azure robes stood quietly amidst the wild grass, his gaze serene as he looked toward the other side. His refined face was incomparably elegant, and his starry eyes held a trace of sadness and relief. A drop of blood fell to the grass, vanishing as though absorbed by paper.  

After a long time, the blood slowly gathered in his palm, forming a tiny human figure. If a Kun-Lai disciple saw this, they might have drawn their sword at once.  

“Dying feels... unpleasant,” Qiu Yuansheng murmured, rubbing his neck as if in lingering fear. “Peak Master An’s sword spanned millennia, slicing ten thousand pieces of flesh from me before finally granting a swift death. Only in that moment did I realize I didn’t truly want to die. And that feeling of being melted in the River of Forgetfulness… I’d rather not remember.”  

“It’s good that you’ve finally found something to fear. It’s a step forward,” the High Priest said with a faint smile, studying the tiny figure in his palm.  

“I thought you didn’t care about me anymore,” Qiu Yuansheng replied with a smile.  

“You are my apprentice. How could I not care?” The High Priest spoke warmly. “But there was a trace of the Xing Dao Master’s divine consciousness in your soul. It only left when you entered the River of Forgetfulness.”  

“So you had it all planned out. What’s next?” Qiu Yuansheng tilted his head. “Don’t tell me we’re still targeting Kun-Lai. You won’t get anything out of the Xing Dao Master.”  

The High Priest fell silent for a moment before sighing softly. “We’ll have to think of another way. But even if I don’t act, someone else will. In the competition for fortune, there’s no room for mercy, Ah Sheng.”  

“I understand,” Qiu Yuansheng nodded. “I’ll follow your lead.”  

“Interested in paying Ziyun Dao a visit?” the High Priest asked gently.  

“I’m not particularly interested, but I’ll go,” Qiu Yuansheng replied, excitement flickering as he guessed, “Have you prepared a new body for me? Are we targeting Ziyun Dao?”  

“Indeed. Yuan Dao Master of the Taiqing Sect wants our help. Be careful. Summoning your soul from the River of Forgetfulness has angered the Yellow Springs. If you die again within a hundred years, your soul will truly scatter into nothingness,” the High Priest warned.  

“Understood,” Qiu Yuansheng replied solemnly.  

The High Priest nodded slightly, his gaze lingering on the strange sun and moon in the sky. “Ah Sheng, this rare phenomenon of day and night sharing the sky will soon pass.”  

“Then let it pass,” Qiu Yuansheng said indifferently. “An opportunity missed isn’t an opportunity.”  

“Coincidences often come in such moments. It was under these skies long ago that I captured his soul,” the High Priest murmured. “That celestial technique cost me a millennium of cultivation.”  

Qiu Yuansheng knew whom he was talking about. Only the Xing Dao Master could have made the High Priest suffer such a loss.  

“Back then, he didn’t seem capable of what he’s achieved today. Alas, one wrong decision turned us into enemies,” the High Priest said softly, his smile tinged with regret. “A thousand years in one day. To see this celestial alignment again would take another thousand years.”  

“Or perhaps ten thousand. Those on the far shore may already be…” Gone? Qiu Yuansheng thought but didn’t voice aloud.  

“If that’s true, it would be a release,” the High Priest sneered, looking toward the opposite bank. “But no, our Kun-Lai survivors have been turned into living pillars to sustain the Great Xuan dragon energy. They are immortal and undying, only allowed to emerge when one life is sacrificed for another.”  

The High Priest himself had escaped from that hell and knew the truth all too well. Only after a Crown Prince of the Xuan Dynasty is born will the Xuan Emperor search within the forbidden land for a remnant clan member whose fate aligns with the crown prince's. A spell will then be cast to make them the crown prince's guardian.

Qiu Yuansheng shuddered but quickly steered the conversation away. “The Taiqing Sect targeting Ziyun Dao—so they’re finally making their move?”  

He had heard from the High Priest that the human race, after a thousand years of recuperation and growth, now showed signs of resurgence. The dragon vein was rising. Back then, the establishment of the Great Xuan Dynasty was due to that certain individual who was born in response to the dragon vein of heaven and earth. After defeating Kun-Lai, the leader of the Four Great Sects from ten thousand years ago, they absorbed the dragon energy accumulated by Kun-Lai over millennia, which led to their prosperity.

“Naturally. The Xing Dao Master’s Western Continent has already formed its own dragon vein. If the Yuan Dao Master of the Taiqing Sect wants to secure their inheritance, he can’t stand idly by. The human race's fortune—how could he let it go?” the High Priest said, raising his head. “For now, I must work with him. Still, there’s a fine line between too much and too little… Let the clan wait. After all, what’s another thousand years after ten thousand?”  

That old man who took in Ji Yunlai, he too was a remnant of the Kun-Lai sect that escaped ten thousand years ago. But looking at things now, it's hard to say which side fared worse.

"The human race's dragon vein—where will it settle this time?" Qiu Yuansheng asked eagerly, certain it would bring yet another storm of blood and chaos. "Also, High Priest, if everything relies on fortune, then aren't our struggles laughable?"

He wasn't much of a believer in such matters.

"The Eye of the South Sea, near the Empty Void. As for your second question—Ah Sheng, fortune is merely an external force. Only those with intelligence can wield it," the High Priest said, a hint of disdain flickering in his eyes. "Otherwise, when the Great Xuan Dynasty drained the human race of a thousand years of fortune, it wouldn't have met its demise through backlash. Similarly, even when the Xing Dao Master suffered the heavenly backlash of fortune in those days, he was able to rise from an abyss of no return, rebuilding the world anew. Fortune may grant temporary peace and prosperity to a person or sect, but without the wisdom to wield it properly, there will come a day when it must be returned."

"I see," Qiu Yuansheng nodded vigorously. "Your apprentice has learned."

"Be careful on this journey. Let me remind you once more: this is your last life. Don’t treat things as carelessly as you have before—be cautious in everything," the High Priest warned. "This time, your life is no dream." 

"Understood, I will be careful," Qiu Yuansheng nodded. A hundred years. As long as he doesn’t die within these hundred years, he can still live recklessly. But within these hundred years, he truly must be careful.