Destiny in Cinders

Snow? Looking up, An Jing caught a snowflake and felt its icy chill as it dissolved in his palm. Indeed, we're in the northwest... Could the snow calamity be causing this? But could its impact reach this far? Perhaps the heavens are about to change.

At this moment, the fiend qi had dissipated, leaving only a battered, golden knuckle at the heart of the vilespawn fiend's corpse.

What's this? Something stirred within him. An Jing stepped forward to retrieve it. Is this something left behind by the adept who severely wounded the vilespawn fiend? Adept Shu...

A potent yang qi remained, gathering within the knuckle and continuously incinerating the lingering fiend qi. But as soon as the fiend qi vanished, the knuckle settled down, its bright gold exterior fading into a dull, brassy finish.

An Jing paused in silence before tucking it away.

Ultimately, this man fell fighting the heavenly fiend to protect the people and followers of this land. Even if he had come for me, it changes nothing. And now... it's time to go. With that final thought, An Jing looked ahead and walked toward the distant city.

Under the night sky, the city lights flickered like fireflies. It had been an eternity since he stepped into the human world. Finally, his grueling days of wandering the wild and fighting the elements were behind him. The perpetual dread of being hunted was gone, and he no longer had to compete with wild beasts for the safety of a hollow tree or cave. No more sleepless nights. No more playing this damned game of hide-and-seek with the demonic cult and the heavenly fiends.

However, An Jing knew all too well that entering Grand Chen's territory brought no promise of peace. Grand Chen's preoccupation with him was likely rivaled only by the demonic cult, to say nothing of the ominous shadows looming over Gu Yeqi and the other children of disaster. Indeed, the Gu clan and the Grand Chen Empire itself constituted a treacherous vortex.

Furthermore, his mother's fate remained a mystery. If An Jing ever hoped to live openly under his real name, he was doomed to a life without peace. The Seven Ruins Arc was truly unfathomable, pulling its bearer into the epicenter of endless conflict. An Jing was destined to alter countless lives and claim just as many.

Like the chaos sparked by the True Talisman within Skysource, unstoppable ripples were bound to surge now that An Jing had removed it from that world. By the same token, his flight from Direlife Manor had sparked an unavoidable clash with the demonic cult, the heavenly fiends, and the empire itself. As long as An Jing pressed onward, similar events would inevitably follow, continuously nurturing the Seven Ruins Arc and thrusting him onto one perilous path after another.

As the boy walked along the increasingly snow-covered mountain trail, he advanced with steady, unhesitating steps, completely without pause or hesitation. For this was the path he had long since chosen... a path uniquely his own.

***

Beyond West Ocean, in the Northblack Sacrifice Continent of Void Embrace, a mirror-like lake of liquid silver and mercury rested at the heart of the main hall of the Heavenly Altar, encircled by ten majestic jade pillars representing the five colors and the five cardinal directions.

The waters reflected the endless stars above. Many faint blue interconnected patterns formed seal scripts that represented the celestial bodies. They cast an ethereal, dreamlike glow on Star Lake that evoked the celestial palaces and pavilions of the ancient Dao Court.

Perched before Star Lake, a solitary figure held a fishing rod made of deadwood, immersed in a state of calm contentment. Ripples broke the lake's smooth surface. Sensing something, the figure lifted his fishing rod, only to find the line empty. Oddly enough, the silk fishing line had no hook attached to it.

"It was a failure after all." The figure let out a soft sigh. Though his voice sounded unusually young, it was nonetheless heavily worn down by the passage of time. "Fortune and fate, the Heavenly Dao's favor, divine arcs—such matters can neither be measured, nor can they ever be fully grasped."

But it's of no consequence... He's obtained the Imperial Sky and Imperial Earth techniques after all. It matters little whether his loyalty lies with the divine cult, as long as he's cultivated them. Anyone who can instinctively grasp Mahesvara Heaven's Child is far too valuable to let slip away...

Speaking of which, divine-arc bearers of Void Embrace are beginning to surface. Indeed, this era is bound to usher in a great calamity. I wonder how many will rise victorious and how many will be reduced to ash in this dao tribulation.

Looking up, the figure stared into the remote, high heavens and the boundless canopy cradling infinite stars, before offering a reverent bow. When the time comes, condemnation and blame will rain down upon you. They will question you and spit curse the very heavens for being treacherous... Haha!

"Foolish are the mortal throng. Lo! How exceedingly foolish they be! Wherein hath Heaven sinned, that it should bear such rebuke?"

***

Within a mountain range at the frontier in Huang Prefecture of the Xishan Region, a spatial rift split the outer edge of Direlife Canyon, leading straight to the nether realm. From this void emerged a sage clad in black robes adorned with intricate gold patterns.

Not a single trace. Where on earth did those two greater heavenly fiends appear from, and where could they have gone?

Hexsun Mystic Mirror, a sage from Voidsight Mountain, knit his brows in profound contemplation. Despite his physical blindness, his sight proved far sharper than ordinary spirit eyes.

Logically speaking, not even the concealment techniques of a greater heavenly fiend could have eluded him. Yet, finding absolutely nothing left Sage Mystic Mirror deeply troubled.

Is someone secretly helping these heavenly fiends? Those from the nether realm are mortal enemies of the heavenly fiends; even the evil gods and spirits share this hatred. The only ones capable of aiding them... could it be...?

His gaze subconsciously drifted toward the perimeter of Direlife Canyon, where the Crimsonguard and Counterfiend Guard camps were located. Sage Mystic Mirror recalled that Liferot had emerged from the midst of the Crimsonguard.

While anyone could fall victim to fiend corruption, it was impossible to rule out the presence of other heavenly fiends within their ranks. Despite being a disciple of the ancient Voidsight Mountain, it would be unwise for him to openly question Grand Chen.

There were 108 upper sects, 800 intermediate sects, and 3,000 skewed sects in Void Embrace. Yet the Ten Heavenly Sects sat above them all. The Grand Chen Empire, one of the Ten Heavenly Sects, reigned as the undisputed master of the Northblack Sacrifice Continent.

Shaking his head faintly, Sage Mystic Mirror forced his racing thoughts to subside. His initial plan had been to return to the city once this affair was concluded, report directly to headquarters, and then brief his employer within Grand Chen on the situation.

From there, he would take the opportunity to achieve his real goal—the task entrusted to him by Endmost Sky. He would then use his cover identity to infiltrate Grand Chen and complete the task.

Hmm? A sweep of his psychic will, capable of extending through the void, suddenly uncovered a clue, drawing a soft exclamation from his lips. Fiend qi piercing the skies? Though it has long since dissipated... How can this be? Is the northwestern wilderness crawling with so many heavenly fiends?

Driven by a blend of curiosity and caution, Sage Mystic Mirror channeled his ability, Lightstream Command. Light erupted beneath his feet, and he crossed a hundred li in the span of a single breath. Before long, he reached the ruins of the village and discovered the black sludge that remained after the vilespawn fiend crumbled away.

Under nature's cleansing, a heavenly fiend that had truly perished would dissolve into dust and soil, fertilizing the earth. Even so, certain toxins could persist for decades. This duration was but a passing breath for the heavens and earth, yet it spelled disaster for humans and the surrounding wildlife.

"The dead are gone." Sage Mystic Mirror sighed, his brow furrowing slightly. If he hadn't been tasked with tracking the greater heavenly fiend, this subfiend would never have been able to stir up any real trouble.

Since the damage was already done, he refused to sink into guilt or squander his energy on pointless self-reproach. Instead, he pressed on, scrutinizing every single detail.

"So the Crimsonguard and demonic cult actually teamed up to intercept and wound the heavenly fiend, only to be defeated... Wait a second! These marks... They were left by Keensight's Shu Zheng. Did he meet his demise here?!" Sage Mystic Mirror's eyes widened in sheer, unadulterated shock.

Majesty Yang Fist was a Clearing Realm adept hailing from Huang Prefecture, where he was widely recognized and celebrated. He stood as a burgeoning talent who possessed a glowing future; not only had he secured an official commendation from the government of Huang Prefecture, he was also appointed the guardian adept fo the city of Keensight. Unexpectedly, the prodigy who should have been climbing towards the pinnacle met a premature end here.

"Something doesn't add up." Channeling his radiant arcane eyes to the absolute limit, Sage Mystic Mirror unveiled a truth that left him in complete disbelief. "How could Majesty Yang Fist's desperate, final move be the demonic cult's Grand Yangburst... Was he a mole?"