Zhou Nation.
The majestic and towering imperial capital stood at the very heart of the nation.
Rising over a hundred zhang in height, the entire city floated, supported by a vast formation suspended in the sky.
A celestial staircase of stone linked its various sections, but not a single path extended to the ground below, an isolated fortress basking in the zenith of its glory.
Clouds billowed on all sides, glowing with vibrant hues. Within, cranes soared, and exotic beasts galloped. Every palace attendant that passed by had elegant features and a measure of cultivation, exuding remarkable bearing, like celestial retainers descended from the heavens.
This city had been constructed at the decree of Ji Chengtian, Emperor of Zhou, after he heard of the suspended city within the Floating Glass Immortal Province.
Reasoning that since the Mysterious Divine Path Sect was the foremost sect in the world, and Zhou was the foremost among all nations, its splendor should be no less, he ordered the construction of this "Imperial Heaven City."
It had taken decades to complete.
Inside the main palace hall, only three cultivators knelt in audience. The atmosphere was suffocating. All three trembled slightly as they bowed, not daring to utter a sound.
These three were all of the Middle Third Grade in cultivation, one from the Three Calamities Sect, one from Lingtai Mountain, and one formerly loyal to the royal family of the Liang Kingdom.
Without exception, all three had been involved in the campaign that had destroyed the Liang Kingdom.
Silken curtains hung down in layers, completely obstructing the kneeling trio's view of the emperor, making it impossible to glean even a hint of his expression or thoughts.
Ji Chengtian sat atop a high platform, eyes closed in meditation, regulating his breath.
He was not seated on a dragon throne, but on a simple square dais with nothing but a cushion.
He wore no dragon robes, only a plain grey Daoist robe. His lean, dignified face carried the refined air of a seasoned cultivator.
He looked nothing like an emperor, more like a true ascetic.
In his hand, a Jade Message Slip pulsed with faint light.
After a long silence, Ji Chengtian opened his eyes and swept his gaze over the three kneeling men below. He spoke mildly:
"Useless vermin. Kill them."
In the blink of an eye, palace maids acted.
The colorful sashes in their hands were in fact marvelous Spiritual Treasures. In a flash, they snapped the necks of the three men, crack.
These maids were graceful and ethereal in appearance, but their actions struck like thunder. In an instant, they transformed into the judges of death.
But this was only the beginning.
Ever since the campaign to destroy Liang had been launched, all related pawns who had since lost their use were to be purged within the hour.
These men had originally been retained by Ji Chengtian to help track down Chen Kuang.
On the day the "Martial Saint" acted, Ji Chengtian had no intention of interfering. In his eyes, that mysterious Elixir of Immortality was likely in the possession of Chu Wenruo and her daughter. A lowly pawn, if killed, so be it.
His true strategy lay with the Eternal Life Lock. So long as the Liang Kingdom still existed, he could continue to manipulate its power.
Yet after the dust settled and several days passed, the Three Calamities Sect reported back, and Ji Chengtian discovered that every Dragon Vein within Liang had mysteriously gone dormant. He could no longer extract any National Fate from them.
Only then did he realize: Su Yu had deceived him.
Feigning a frontal assault while secretly rerouting through the back.
The National Fate had been transferred!
But by whom?
Even if he suspected the truth, the one responsible had already crossed the border into Yang Nation... Even for Ji Chengtian, action now required patience and careful planning.
Fortunately, Chen Kuang's luck was abysmal.
No sooner had he entered Yang Nation than he was dragged into the rebellion of Prince Jingnan, a matter that escalated drastically, even Sages intervened. Eventually, he even turned against the emperor himself.
Ji Chengtian's spies in Yang Nation relayed the news immediately.
And that was when Ji Chengtian finally understood, Chen Kuang, whom he had dismissed as a mere pawn, was in fact the true one who had taken both the Elixir of Immortality and the National Fate!
But Ji Chengtian wasn't angry. He was pleased.
Any piece, once exposed, could be manipulated.
And over the past month of developments, he had clearly seen how many incompetents were under his command.
From this day forward, knowledge of the Eternal Life Lock would be restricted to only a few of his most trusted aides.
Naturally, this included his children.
Ji Chengtian sighed and murmured:
"Su Yu... I thought you were nothing but a spineless dog. Never imagined you'd already grown fangs and planned such a masterstroke."
His gaze turned cold, and he raised his head slightly, as if looking up toward the endless sky.
"But unfortunately, this was no isolated move."
"And if it isn't isolated, then it must have a weakness."
Ji Chengtian waved his hand, summoning his Deathsworn, and spoke with a calm smile:
"As it happens, Yanwei is in Jishao Prefecture, and he's acquainted with Chen Kuang. He likely knows exactly how many people are in Chen Kuang's household. Go tell him, this matter is his responsibility now."
The deathsworn bowed low: "As you command."
Then vanished without a trace.
The remaining people in the hall stood silent, chills running down their spines.
Ji Chengtian had long known of the Second Prince's acquaintance with Chen Kuang, and the faint friendship between them.
Zhou Yanwei had thought that secretly raising his own deathsworn troops was an act of great caution, but in truth, Ji Chengtian had merely turned a blind eye.
He had always seen it as the youthful indulgence of a boy, entirely within his grasp, so he had never bothered to intervene.
But now... the Crown Prince had died in battle in the Northern Wilds, and Ji Chengtian had begun to feel the stirrings of suspicion.
This time, he would have Zhou Yanwei personally capture the Chen Clan, to prove his own loyalty.
Before long, a wave of startled exclamations echoed from outside. A figure rushed into the hall, fell to his knees trembling, and cried out:
"Your Majesty, the 'Martial Saint'... has fallen!"
Ji Chengtian's brows furrowed. "Explain in detail."
"Yes."
The messenger quickly reported:
"The 'Martial Saint' battled the Earthly Spirit Dao Lord. She did not fall, instead, she gained insight and attained sainthood. The 'Martial Saint's' Dao Heart was shattered, he suffered repeated defeats, and ultimately self-detonated, dying on the spot."
Ji Chengtian, however, knew things were not so simple.
The Earthly Spirit Dao Lord had entered the battle to protect Chen Kuang, how could she have attained enlightenment from that?
How had the "Martial Saint's" Dao Heart been shattered?
The Earthly Spirit Dao Lord had never been one for clever words.
Then... most likely, it was Chen Kuang who had intervened.
Ji Chengtian's eyes flickered with light. At last, he became utterly certain:
"The 'National Fate' of the Liang Kingdom has manifested its power through him."
A nation's National Fate could suppress even a Saint.
Even if what Chen Kuang bore was merely the National Fate of a declining kingdom like Liang, the possibility that it could affect a Saint's Dao Heart was not to be dismissed.
This only further solidified Ji Chengtian's unshakable desire to pursue the Dao.
Before long, another messenger entered with yet another piece of news, this one brought even greater delight to Ji Chengtian. His eyes gleamed with ambition as he exclaimed:
"Good! Excellent!"
A long-standing task had finally borne fruit. Ji Chengtian rose to his feet and laughed heartily:
"Someone! I shall personally go and welcome our Great Zhou's, "
"Eastern Sovereign Saint, returned from death!"
...
Liang Kingdom.
From early that morning, Chen Ning had felt a persistent sense of unease, tightness in her chest, and inexplicable anxiety.
But she assumed it was simply due to the bad weather, and didn't pay much attention to it.
Ever since her elder brother Chen Kuang departed, the entirety of Jishao Prefecture, from the Canal Gang to the Prefect's Office, had fallen under Chen family control.
Though Zhou Yanwei, who claimed to be Chen Kuang's friend, had unclear origins, Chen Ning, ever perceptive, had already guessed the truth and secretly warned her second brother to remain vigilant.
One must always guard against others, especially when the other party was half an enemy.
The fact that Chen Kuang had personally arranged for their own people to replace those in the Prefect's Office clearly showed he had not placed full trust in Zhou Yanwei either.
But overall, the Chen family's situation had never been better.
Jishao Prefecture was in the midst of reconstruction, and the Chen family's influence was expanding rapidly.
Recently, Hong Xueshao had discovered she was with child. She and Chen An began preparing for their wedding, and even Tie Baiyuan had personally forged a sword as a gift for his future son-in-law.
Chen An, taking his elder brother's achievements as his own inspiration, worked hard to manage the vast Canal Gang. Though it was an overwhelming task, he gave it his all and improved at a rapid pace.
In less than half a month, he had already gained an imposing demeanor, and with this momentum, plus the cultivation techniques and pills left behind by Fan Hailong of the Canal Gang, he had successfully broken through to the Innate Realm.
When Chen Ning returned home from the academy and stepped across the threshold, she felt a cold touch upon her forehead.
Looking up, she saw a faint snow beginning to fall from the gloomy sky.
She pulled her coat tighter and muttered to herself:
"Of course, it's already nearly the eleventh month."
This was the first snowfall of the year, arriving earlier than expected.
Normally, Chen Ning adored the snow. But today, the suffocating atmosphere killed her mood, and she hurried toward the main hall.
"Father! Mother!"
Though quiet by nature, Chen Ning showed rare liveliness when in front of her parents, Chen Rong and Gantang.
The moment she saw them both seated in the hall, she beamed and rushed over.
But after only a few steps, her smile froze.
She saw both her parents trembling slightly in their chairs. Behind each of them stood a dark figure, expressionless, holding daggers pressed against their backs.
Chen Rong's eyes were bulging, body frozen, face twisted in a grimace. His mouth moved soundlessly, forming one clear word:
"Run!"
Chen Ning whipped around, and saw a familiar figure slowly stepping into the room.
Zhou Yanwei.
The Second Prince waved his hand, and immediately, a deathsworn dragged in Chen An, his face red with rage, completely immobilized, and threw him onto the floor.
For someone his age to have reached the Innate Realm was already an extraordinary feat.
But that was meaningless before Zhou Nation's elite deathsworn.
Zhou Yanwei looked at Chen Ning and said with reluctant apology:
"Sister from the Chen family, forgive me."
"Today, I must borrow your lives."
He took a deep breath and exchanged a glance with Lin Eryou, who stepped out of the shadows. Then, he produced a communication talisman.
This talisman was different from a Jade Message Slip, it could transmit not only voice but images as well.
...
Chen Kuang stood silently, watching as the flame before him went out. The entire world seemed to slow around him.
With the fall of the Martial Saint, the residual force from his self-detonation spread outward. The two Dao Domains compressed violently, collapsing the space by a thousand zhang, it was impossible to distinguish near from far.
The light of the Glazed Image-Freezing Lamp burst forth in a sudden blaze, illuminating heaven and earth in a single flash. In that moment, it revealed everyone present, both near and far.
Beneath Chen Kuang's feet, two shadows extended, distinct from each other.
But what truly caught his eye was a figure in the distance.
First and foremost, Shen Meinan, who had taken over Shen Xingzhu's body.
Beneath her feet, a strange shadow appeared, it was not human-shaped, but resembled a pair of conjoined lotus blossoms.
Then came the ever-unremarkable monk Xiuzhu from the Garan Temple, and the sharp-witted Wisdom Sword Jiang Yunqing, who had aided Chen Kuang many times.
Behind them as well, faint, indistinct shadows had been cast.
But they were too far away. Even with Chen Kuang's Piercing Insight, he could not see clearly what shapes their shadows took.
Suddenly, Jiang Wuya, as played by Xi Mengquan, echoed in his mind,
"You are one of the 'Heavenly Destinies.' What is meant to be will find you, what isn't, should never be forced. You'll meet them eventually."
In this single venture into the Ancient Battlefield of Meditation, he had encountered three individuals who could be Heavenly Destinies.
It was truly wondrous.
Chen Kuang's thoughts spun endlessly for an instant.
The next moment, the light of the Glazed Image-Freezing Lamp faded. The shadows, fleeting as they were, vanished into dust.
"BOOOOM!!!!"
Chen Kuang bore witness to a Saint, no, a Profound Realm cultivator, self-detonating at full force.
It was as if a star had collapsed. The sun and moon lost their radiance.
Though he had kept himself at a safe distance, the shockwave still struck him like a divine hammer weighing tens of thousands of jin, pulverizing his internal organs.
"Puh!"
His face turned ghostly pale. Blood gushed from his mouth.
But Chen Kuang was never afraid of physical injury. Gritting his teeth, he endured it.
What hurt most now was his soul, which had been gravely damaged.
The pain he could once easily bear now nearly drove him unconscious.
Thankfully, a pair of soft hands caught him and pulled him into a warm embrace.
An immense surge of Spiritual Energy flooded into his body, keeping him barely conscious.
He couldn't help but chuckle bitterly.
His Sea of Consciousness was nearly dry. In another quarter hour, his cultivation might fall back to Lower Third Grade.
"I really played the role well back then... Everyone thought this 'Senior Tongjun' was some big shot... but in the end, it was just a fancy silver spear with a paper shaft."
Lu Zhexuan pinched his cheek lightly to vent her frustration.
Then, in a softer tone, she asked:
"How did you know what I intended?"
This time, she had essentially faked her death.
She'd tricked Chen Kuang into revealing his true feelings, and also seized a chance to attain sainthood, a double victory.
She'd won completely.
Chen Kuang leaned against her and stared at her for a moment before speaking:
"Are you sure you want me to say it?"
Lu Zhexuan nodded.
Though she had used Chen Kuang to reach sainthood and her motives were impure, she still wanted to know how much of his sincerity was real.
Chen Kuang leaned close to her ear and whispered:
"You were lying-"
"You said you weren't a good master, and didn't want to fight your disciple for a man's love."
He blinked and said solemnly:
"That... was a lie."
Lu Zhexuan remained expressionless.
She was a Saint now. She couldn't be embarrassed so easily.
"Yes. It was a lie."
She smiled slightly, then added:
"So now, you must choose. The disciple? Or the master?"
Can't I have both?
Chen Kuang really wanted to say that.
But his rational mind told him: now was not the time to provoke a Daoist Shore Realm Saint who had ascended by way of devoted infatuation.
He didn't answer directly. Instead, he looked at Lu Zhexuan and said:
"I once spoke of a bond beyond body or mind... even now, I dare not forget it."
Then he offered a proposal:
"My mind is shattered, my soul nearly spent. It's not the time for such choices. Once I've recovered, shall we revisit the question?"
A vague promise. A delay.
Lu Zhexuan snorted softly, a reluctant acquiescence.
She carried Chen Kuang back to rejoin the others.
Everyone gathered to congratulate her on attaining sainthood. Only Shen Meinan, seeing that Chen Kuang was unharmed, was particularly overjoyed, but constrained by the vessel she occupied, she could only offer a reserved few words of congratulations, unable to step forward to check on him, her heart stifled with frustration.
Chen Kuang, still barely conscious, forced himself to step a few paces away from Lu Zhexuan to avoid suspicion.
At that moment, Ji Wangquan suddenly stepped forward and smiled:
"Chen Ruogu, my royal father invites you to the Zhou Nation as a guest. Would you be willing?"
Everyone was shocked.
By now, they all knew, Chen Ruogu was Chen Kuang.
And he bore a blood feud with Zhou Nation!
For Ji Chengtian to invite him now... the implications were profound.
Chen Kuang inhaled deeply.
"And if I'm not willing?"
Ji Wangquan tossed over a communication talisman:
"You will be."