The door to the Memory Palace couldn't be opened. Was it that his subconscious mind had reinforced the memory seal? Or was there a mysterious existence manipulating his destiny? Did Qing Yuzi saying he hadn't won imply something related to the Xuanhuang Realm?
Zhao Xing opened his eyes and rubbed his temples. "Old Qing has been in the Xuanhuang Realm for a long time. He told me to return to the Transmission Tower, saying that after the [Karma War], I had become like Tang Seng, with everyone wanting a bite of me."
"But I can only trust three parts of what he says!"
Zhao Xing would never fully trust Qing Yuzi. Since he unearthed Old Qing's treasure from the Xuanhuang Realm, Qing Yuzi's methods had never been straightforward.
At first, he had disguised himself as the Third Realm of the Primordial Source in the Purple God Mansion. Later, he became a major figure in the Reincarnation Temple, using Zhao Xing to complete the resurrection ritual, stealing the fate and treasures of the Dongyan Ancient Clan, and borrowing the path to godhood. Thinking back, this guy had even stolen the Divine Creation Stele from the Temple and framed it on the Dongyan Ancient Clan.
Relying on the many treasures of the Dongyan Ancient Clan and the deaths or reincarnations of thousands of beings in the Reincarnation Realm, Qing Yuzi had become a god.
Looking back on Qing Yuzi's path to godhood, it could be said that he was bold and audacious, but it was far from honorable.
"Since the Yuanhai Conference incident, Qing Yuzi promised to fulfill three wishes for me."
"My first request was to safely reach the Empire."
"My second request was the Boundary Stone."
"My third request was for him to step in and save me once, to resolve our karma."
"But after coming to the Empire and entering the Primordial Realm, I never contacted Qing Yuzi first."
"Until the Empire started developing the Siyue Barren Domain, when I was on my way to become the Sea Messenger, I finally met Qing Yuzi. But that time, he appeared in my dream uninvited."
"He first taught me the Reincarnation Technique and then ignored the fact that he would inevitably become entangled with Wei Tianchen, allowing the trouble to unfold… If we disregard the intervention during the Transmission Time, the actual rescue came from the collaboration between the Empire's Gu Luohe and the Primordial Hill people. He simply said I wouldn't die."
"Since he saw more than Wei Tianchen, Bowe, and even the Celestial Master Manor… doesn't that mean he allowed Wei Tianchen to take away the Seven Stars Combat Cabinet with the Barren God Poison?"
If anyone had suggested Qing Yuzi was incapable of stopping Wei Tianchen, Zhao Xing wouldn't believe it, but that was precisely what happened. Qing Yuzi let Wei Tianchen take the Seven Stars Combat Cabinet and watched as Zhao Xing was poisoned with the True Spirit Heavenly Poison.
Therefore, Zhao Xing had three parts fear, three parts admiration, three parts helplessness, and only one part trust in Qing Yuzi.
His level of trust in the Empire was far greater than his trust in Qing Yuzi.
It was only out of helplessness that he got involved with Qing Yuzi.
"The three major factions of the Reincarnation Temple, Qing Yuzi belongs to the faction that actively intervenes in the world. What is he really scheming?"
"But no matter what he's plotting, I no longer have to fear him." Zhao Xing smiled.
In the Transmission Space, in the divine rune area of the Xu Ancestor's Molt Bone.
Zhao Xing had three choices when facing the Xu Ancestor's divine runes.
First, his true self could take some risks and learn, carrying the secret method back with his soul. Given that he had learned the Heart-Sealing Technique from Fan Qianrou and had Blue Flower's magic protection, Zhao Xing thought the success rate was quite high.
Second, he could do nothing, return directly, and as just a person from the Death Dao Domain, he couldn't carry anything out anyway. It wouldn't matter, and the Primordial Realm couldn't blame him.
Third, he could use Qing Yuzi's divine statue to bear the secret method.
On the surface, Zhao Xing had no choice, but in reality, he had already decided to use the third option.
There were many reasons, but the most important one was distrust. He didn't want to be manipulated.
"No matter what you, Qing Yuzi, are plotting, what schemes you have, thinking my life isn't worth anything, letting Wei Tianchen escape… The first time was one thing, I was too weak then, and though I had some repulsion, I didn't dare to show it."
"But now that you're doing it a second time, you really think I'm just a puppet…"
Zhao Xing wasn't afraid of Qing Yuzi being displeased.
First, before acting, he had pretended to pray, showing no choice, but it was actually a test.
Second, even if Qing Yuzi noticed his repulsion, he still had someone to shoulder the blame.
Bowe had brainwashed him for three hundred years. His Avatar heard everything clearly. Zhao Xing took advantage of this growing repulsion, assuming there might be a problem, like being questioned by Qing Yuzi… He could always find a reason for it.
If this really happened, Zhao Xing imagined Bowe would be very pleased to see that!
"Although the information from the Transmission Space didn't need to be exchanged for a quota, once the divine statue carried the information, the statue itself became an expensive physical treasure."
"After successfully bearing the information, Qing Yuzi, being in the same space-time, would inevitably be affected. This conclusion was drawn based on the understanding that he would be rejected by the Transmission Tower's laws."
Whether it was Wei Tianchen, Bowe, or Qing Yuzi, all of them were setting up schemes around him… If Zhao Xing hadn't resisted at all and had followed the path of the Karma War, would that still be the old Zhao Xing?
So, he had carried out a silent, subtle resistance in this way.
How effective it was, Zhao Xing didn't know, but what he knew was that he had to do it.
"Handing the divine statue over to the Red Star Emperor was a form of insurance for this resistance."
He knew that as he grew stronger, he would eventually face a great trial, and sooner or later, he would be forced to choose: Would he be a person of the Reincarnation Temple represented by Qing Yuzi, or would he be a person of the Red Star Empire?
Continuing to remain unclear with Qing Yuzi was fine during the honeymoon phase of their cooperation, but what if the relationship soured?
If Qing Yuzi asked Zhao Xing to do something, would he do it or not?
Zhao Xing understood well. If this issue wasn't resolved, he would never be truly accepted by the Empire.
"Generally speaking, the longer the time, the more a spell involving the fourteen lines of the Destiny Palace will seek to influence a person's life," Ji Si continued.
"What is meant by directed protection is that your Destiny Palace's fourteen lines, Grand Shennong, won't be manipulated by others," she explained.
"But it won't affect your fortune, opportunities, or even provide slight assistance in certain secret realms."
Zhao Xing had learned some fortune-telling in the past and quickly understood.
"In other words, others can only use karma and fate spells to plot my wealth, but they can't harm my life?" Zhao Xing asked.
"Yes," Ji Si nodded.
"Well, that's much easier to handle," Zhao Xing smiled. "As long as the fourteen lines of my Destiny Palace are not affected, the rest is trivial. Besides, wearing a few treasures would easily offer protection."
"Ji Si, continue."
Ji Si switched back to a serious expression. "Zhao Xing, it's important to explain that the [Karma War] was instigated by Wei Tianchen. It happened suddenly, and the Celestial Master Manor had to respond urgently, so they couldn't perfect everything."
"You were captured by Wei Tianchen, and that was because the Celestial Master Manor didn't have time to react. At first, your karma protection was set up by Jing Yue and was the same as for all the Coral-level members."
"Later, the Celestial Master Manor placed karma traps on you, luring the Demon Clan Emperor into the scheme. This was to help you complete the time-space law loop of the Transmission Space Tower, and they did it as an afterthought."
After a brief pause, Ji Si spoke with a deep tone: "If one day, the Empire requires you to make a sacrifice, they will inform you in advance. Do you understand?"
Zhao Xing's expression turned serious. "Yes, I understand."
The Celestial Master Manor was explaining the background of the Karma War to him.
They wanted to prevent him from harboring any resentment.
The last sentence was very direct: if a sacrifice was necessary, they would inform him beforehand.
Even if it meant facing death, it would be a voluntary death, without any hidden schemes.
Zhao Xing had already known this about the Red Star Empire.
Any Fate Master who participated in the war played the role of a strategist. Since it was a war, a common tactic was the baiting strategy.
Meng Wu's teacher, Yan Shen, who was in charge of the Empire's military, had strict rules regarding Fate Masters. Whenever they faced such tasks, they were required to inform the executor of the task about the situation.
"What? You say this would leak the Heavenly Secrets? That's a problem for your Celestial Master Manor, not our military's concern."
Had anyone violated this rule?
Yes, there had been some.
There were always a few Fate Masters who were greedy for credit or coerced, but the military cracked down hard on it.
Meng Wu's two-liangpo prison had detained and executed many people, including those with power and influence.
At least in the core high levels of the Celestial Master Manor, this command was strictly followed.
"Mm." Ji Si nodded, then suddenly shuddered, ending the mystical state.
Zhao Xing knew that the Empire's Heavenly Master had ended the 'spiritual possession' technique.
"Grand Shennong, my mission is complete," Ji Si sighed in relief.
Zhao Xing suddenly remembered something. "Ji Si, you once said you wanted to go to the Five Emperors Era with me. Now that the Karma War is over, you should be able to speak about it, right?"
"It was originally planned to go to the Five Emperors Era to remove the True Spirit Heavenly Poison from Grand Shennong," Ji Si said. "This was a backup plan prepared by my master for you, probably because he didn't fully trust Bowe."
"Oh? Why?" Zhao Xing was intrigued. "Bowe is considered the greatest scholar of the Second Era of the Barren Domain, and his reputation is very high."
Ji Si shook her head. "In my master's eyes, a person is just a person. Any title won't affect his judgment. This is also what he taught me—the first principle of a Fate Master is that personal emotions must not be attached after entering the game."
"My master said that Bowe had hidden intentions, and he couldn't tell whether they were good or bad, so he considered this factor."
Zhao Xing couldn't help but laugh.
In this Karma War, Bowe had pressed Wei Tianchen down and used his divination to get ahead. The Celestial Master Manor had seen more and considered things more thoroughly.
The mantis stalks the cicada, unaware of the yellow bird waiting behind. After thinking about it, Wei Tianchen was the weakest of them all. Anyone could give him a few kicks.
"Having power is indeed a good thing," Zhao Xing couldn't help but sigh.
Wei Tianchen was fighting alone, while the other three sides—the Celestial Master Manor had the Empire as support, Bowe had the foundation of the Scholarly City, and Qing Yuzi was no slouch, being from the high ranks of the Reincarnation Temple.
Even though Wei Tianchen had many divine artifacts, he couldn't compare to these superpowers. It was laughable that he had claimed to win the Karma War back then.
"Speaking of which, I wonder how Great Zhou is developing."
Zhao Xing had been recuperating for three hundred years and still held many positions, so Great Zhou was still benefiting from his role as a first-class envoy, developing along the Ancient Star Road.
"It's developing rapidly," Ji Si smiled at this. "Grand Shennong, I won't go into detail. Once you return, you can see for yourself. There will be a few surprises waiting for you."
Zhao Xing nodded. From what Ji Si implied, the development of Great Zhou couldn't be summed up in a few words.
"Return"—that word touched a nerve in Zhao Xing.
Ji Si seemed to have thought of something and cast him a questioning look.
Zhao Xing thought for a moment and shook his head.
Regarding the matter with the Xuanhuang Realm, no matter whether Qing Yuzi's intentions were good or bad, Zhao Xing had always had his own considerations.
Return, he would definitely return.
But he wasn't planning to act blindly.
"Since the Chenluo Barren Domain wasn't originally a barren domain, then long ago, it must have been a spiritual domain, and it's very likely that some important figures once appeared there."
"Gu Luohe showed me the historical map of the Ancient River Domain before. The Red Star Empire has a long history, and it inherited some of the last territories and Dao traditions from the Five Emperors' era. I'm sure there are historical records there."
Times had changed, and now Zhao Xing could speak freely with Ji Si without having to be so cautious. Of course, they didn't directly mention the Xuanhuang Realm but instead casually discussed the Chenluo Barren Domain.
"Originally, the Transmission Space Tower seemed like a good option, but now Bowe doesn't seem to like me much," Zhao Xing said helplessly. "I probably won't have a chance to go to the Transmission Space Tower for a while."
Otherwise, he would have gone straight to the historical region of the Xuanhuang Realm to see for himself.
Of course, this was assuming that the Transmission Space Tower had a transmission related to the Xuanhuang Realm's storyline.
Ji Si said, "Grand Shennong, I've heard that there have been some issues with the Transmission Space Tower. Bowe has suddenly slowed down the release of the second batch of slots and raised the fees, which has hurt his reputation a bit."
"Never mind him. If he doesn't want me to go, I won't go for now," Zhao Xing mused, suspecting that his own actions had something to do with it.
The Black Moon Tree and Soul-devouring Grass couldn't have grown to Emperor-level without reason.
The principle of replacement is the conservation of spiritual energy between the two realms. Since his two seedlings had become stronger, and the divine statue had been repaired, there had to be a price to pay.
It was possible that Bowe had delayed the second batch of slots and increased the fees because he had taken quite a bit of the realm's spiritual energy due to Zhao Xing's actions.
"Once I gather the information, it will be time to act," Zhao Xing said. "My breakthrough to the Reincarnation Realm in the path of the True Self is not far off. I plan to open up my inner world first."
"Grand Shennong, really?" Ji Si's face lit up with joy.
Breaking through to the Reincarnation Realm in the True Self path and opening up the inner world was a major transformation!
She hadn't expected Zhao Xing to have reached this stage.
"Of course, it's true."
The Xuanhuang Realm had undergone a drastic change, as Zhao Xing had learned from Wang Tianzhi.
Even Old Wang had already reached the Life-and-Death Domain. If he rushed back recklessly, he might just end up being a burden.
Opening up his inner world would first make him stronger.
Secondly, it was troublesome to store items and bring people along in the Barren Domain. After opening up his inner world, things would be much more convenient.
"Has Grand Shennong planned how to proceed? Alone, or...?"
"Of course, we'll go together."
If Zhao Xing was going back, he would definitely take Ji Che, Ji Si, and the others with him.
According to Wang Tianzhi, the Xuanhuang Realm had undergone a major change.
Some of the ancient divine artifacts from back then must have grown stronger as well!
Items like the Human Emperor Sword and the Book of Destiny were Xuanhuang treasures, but only Ji Che, the Human Emperor, could wield them.
So, in Zhao Xing's plan, he needed to grow stronger, open up his inner world, and elevate the strength of Great Zhou as well.
At the moment, apart from Ji Si, no one else in Great Zhou had Reincarnation-level combat power. They did have several weak Reincarnation guest elders, but none of them could compare to Zhao Xing.
"We need to find an opportunity for Great Zhou," Zhao Xing said. "You don't need to participate in this. It's something I, as the Grand Shennong, need to take care of. You should focus on the cultivation as per the Heavenly Master's instructions."
Ji Si was excited, but since Zhao Xing said so, he could only nod. As a Fate Master, he still had cultivation left to do in two more realms.
But he asked one more question: "Grand Shennong, how do you plan to proceed?"
"It's still just an idea, but it will definitely be in the Siyi Barren Domain," Zhao Xing said. "Let me report to the Hongshan Emperor first."
"Alright, if Grand Shennong gives an order, please let me know!" Ji Si was eager to contribute his strength. After all, he had always been the beneficiary and had even been accepted as a disciple by the Heavenly Master.
"Of course," Zhao Xing smiled as he saw Ji Si off.
Then he took out the Star Realm communication device and contacted the Hongshan Emperor.
"Zhao Xing, are you feeling better now?"
"Thanks to the Emperor, I'm almost recovered," Zhao Xing nodded. "I've been away from my position as the Sea Passage Envoy for three hundred years, and I feel very guilty."
"It's no problem. You should rest more, and once you're fully recovered, we can talk," the Hongshan Emperor replied. "There's nothing urgent with the Sea Passage Ancient Road at the moment, just some simple tasks."
At this moment, the Hongshan Emperor really didn't have anything for Zhao Xing to do.
Zhao Xing, however, wasn't very happy. He still had debts to pay, needed to break through to the Reincarnation Realm, and couldn't afford to just sit around.
He had to work!
"Emperor, I really want to do something, even if it's something like moving mountains and stars," Zhao Xing said.
The Hongshan Emperor chuckled, "If I send you to do something like moving mountains and stars, not only would Lu Shan Jun disagree, but other disciples from the Primordial Hills would also say that I, Hongshan, misuse people."
"How could I have you do menial labor like a simple worker when you're the Holy Son of the Primordial Hills, a figure like the founder of the Dao Tree who has written books?"
"..."
Zhao Xing felt a little melancholic.
Why couldn't he get a chance to do something?
Without working, how would he make money? Without money, how would he get the resources to level up?
He had two major troops to support, and opening up the inner world wasn't just about having a single Boundary-breaking Divine Stone.
He could be considered quite wealthy right now, with the Mixed Yuan Dao Tower, two Emperor-level troops, and a Boundary-breaking Divine Stone.
But these were all precious treasures that he had to use himself. He couldn't sell them off. He still needed to earn the resources for the breakthrough to the Reincarnation Realm. The Primordial Realm could provide cultivation resources for the genius level, but it wouldn't keep providing free resources forever.
Zhao Xing was already at the Life-and-Death Domain level, considered strong, but he had to find a way to make money on his own.
Seeing Zhao Xing's troubled expression, the Hongshan Emperor stopped joking and offered some news: "If you want to accumulate merit, the Seven Great Ancient Roads don't really have any major opportunities for wealth anymore."
"But, the Annihilation Star Ancient Road development has been going very poorly. Not long ago, the major families responsible for that area of the Empire planned to give up the development rights for this ancient road and look for someone else to take over. Someone asked me about it."
"The Annihilation Star Ancient Road?" Zhao Xing's eyes lit up.