Ze Tian Ji (Way of Choices)

Chapter 736 – Better to Not Have Met

In the past, Chen Changsheng’s fate had been very poor. Later on, his fate had become very good. To put it another way, his fate had been changed.

On that night, at the peak of the Mausoleum of Books, the Tianhai Divine Empress had defied the heavens and changed his fate.

From that moment forward, his path of cultivation was smooth and that shadow hanging over his head for ten-some years vanished, leaving only light.

Of course, as his fate and status changed, he encountered a set of new trials that he had never imagined. Even with the Divine Staff in hand, wanting to become the master of the Orthodoxy was still incredibly difficult. Fortunately, the Pope had made many arrangements for him before returning to the sea of stars, had already smoothed the road as much as he possibly could.

From a certain perspective, the Pope had also changed his fate.

For the sake of passing this grand inheritance into Chen Changsheng’s hands, the Pope had made the most meticulous of plans. Not even mentioning the rainbow in the Li Palace and the figure that had vanished from the prayer mat in the Orange Garden, the starlight in the cavern below New North Bridge and those three green leaves were enough to see how much thought he had put into this plan.

The Pope had chosen the little Black Dragon to be Chen Changsheng’s Protector for several reasons. Naturally, she was strong enough, as besides experts of the Divine Domain, few people on the continent could defeat her. The more important reason was her identity, because she was the princess of the Black Frost Dragon clan that had helped the demi-humans establish their kingdom countless years ago.

The White Emperor couple had probably known long ago that a Black Frost Dragon was imprisoned near the Imperial City, but they had never complained. Perhaps it was because that piece of history was too long ago, or perhaps it was because ‘friendship’ could never overcome ‘worth’. The Pope did not care about their opinion. He rescued the Black Dragon for the explicit purpose of forcing White Emperor City to accept this favor.

Even if the White Emperor couple wanted to play deaf and mute, the tribes along the two shores of the Red River and their elders would not agree.

The Pope conducted himself like the cool breeze or the bright moon and was never much one to scheme or plot, but he was still someone that had lived on this world for a thousand years, so he had a deep understanding of the human mind.

And in this aspect, humans and demi-humans were no different.

He had calculated correctly.

The little Black Dragon had crawled out of the well of New North Bridge and walked through the snow to the Orthodox Academy.

Madam Mu had sighed and boarded her Rainbow Deer carriage to leave the capital.

Even now, Chen Changsheng was still unable to completely understand how much thought and effort the Pope had poured into this plan. He was too young, and even though he was well-versed in the Daoist Canon and knew many legends and stories, he found it difficult to connect them to the present. Thus, even after he heard what Shang Xingzhou had to say next, he needed to contemplate those words for a very long time before finally understanding what they meant.

“Do you know who Yin’s Protector was?”

“I don’t know.”

“Chen Xuanba.”

This was truly an answer that no one could have imagined.

In the past one thousand years, two names shone the greatest over the continent.

One was Zhou Dufu, and the other was Emperor Taizong.

But before Chen Xuanba died, nobody dared to claim that either Zhou Dufu or Emperor Taizong could dominate the world. In those ten-some years, an abnormally short period in the long river of history, he competed with those two in different areas, and in each aspect, he excelled and dazzled with astonishing talent.

This sort of person could be called unequalled throughout the world.

Even if the Pope had been a legitimate to the successor of the Daoist teachings back then, he still was not worthy of having a hegemon of the generation serving as his Protector.

Unless there was still some other secret behind this matter, of course.

“Chen Xuanba should be your ancestor. There is even a chance that you were made using the last drops of essence blood he left in this world, so Yin is settling a debt.”

Shang Xingzhou asked, “Now do you understand his meaning?”

Chen Changsheng fell silent for a very long time, then nodded his head.

The Pope’s love and pity could have come from many places. Perhaps he was settling a debt, or perhaps he was ashamed, or perhaps he had made a promise.

He had never seriously considered this before, but he had always understood the meaning behind the Pope’s plans.

His master did not like him and wanted him to die, but this did not mean that he wanted his master to die.

This also meant that the relationship between him and Shang Xingzhou did not need to be one in which one had to kill the other.

If he remained in the capital, he would assuredly become the source of disorder unless he decided to lead the Orthodoxy in battle against the Imperial Court.

He would naturally not do this, as he could not find a single reason for doing so.

Did he really want to seize the throne from his senior brother?

As for evils…he was well aware that Shang Xingzhou had enough confidence to return his accusations with questions. The Imperial Court was newly established, so even if it wanted to commit evil, it hadn’t even had a chance. The ugly evils at present were all Zhou Tong’s, and no matter how much affection Chen Changsheng felt for her, it was appropriate to attribute the majority of Zhou Tong’s evils to the Tianhai Divine Empress.

Chen Changsheng looked at Shang Xingzhou and asked, “And you, Master? Does Master understand Martial Uncle’s meaning?”

Shang Xingzhou did not reply.

After his long conversation with the Pope on that night, and then when he saw the Black Dragon walk out of the snow, he came to completely understand Yin’s meaning.

Just when had Changsheng become his heart obstruction? Perhaps it was also on that night in the Mausoleum of Books?

When he had picked that infant out from the wooden basin in the stream and sorrowfully said that his fate was bad, it was because he already knew the fate of this infant.

Before Chen Changsheng was even born, his sun wheel had been shattered, and then his body had been filled with an unimaginable quantity of Sacred Light by the people of the other continent, ensuring that he could never live past the age of twenty.

When he had spoken to Chen Changsheng about defying the heavens and changing fate, he had naturally been deceiving him. He had never once thought that Chen Changsheng could succeed in changing his fate, no matter how astonishing his talent. He had only had several years left between the time he left Xining Village and the age of twenty. Even if Zhou Dufu were reborn or Wang Zhice regained his youth, they could not have possibly accomplished such a feat.

Reality proved that his view was correct. By the night in which the coup of the Mausoleum of Books took place, Chen Changsheng was still unable to successfully defy the heavens and change his fate, and was bereft of even a sliver of hope. He believed that Chen Changsheng would die, or be eaten by Tianhai, or reach the natural termination of his life. Yet unimaginably, Tianhai, taking everyone by surprise, took another choice.

If one said that this was a chessboard that he had laid down, Tianhai’s death was the winning play. He thought that he had gained victory in this chess game, yet when he looked upon the chessboard, he realized to his shock that a piece that should have died was still standing on the board.

A chess piece that should have died was still alive, and the once-dull endgame had instantly undergone countless transformations.

This piece on the chessboard already seemed to have escaped the bounds of the board, a fact that deeply disconcerted Shang Xingzhou.

Thus, on the Divine Path in the face of the rising sun, he made a decision.

He needed Chen Changsheng to die as quickly as possible, for this chess piece to disappear as quickly as possible.

So on the Divine Path, he did not even glance at Chen Changsheng.

And thus, so many events took place in the aftermath.

Only after that long conversation did he begin to vaguely understand.

Because of this chess piece’s relationship to him, because of the Dao that he cultivated, he had placed too much importance on the chess piece and wasted far too much energy on it.

Yin had spoken correctly.

Since both sides loathed each other…

Meeting was far inferior to not meeting.

Shang Xingzhou turned and began walking out of the Orthodox Academy.

Just like on the Divine Path of the Mausoleum of Books, he did not look again at Chen Changsheng.

Then ten-some blue-clothed Daoists followed him.

All of this happened too suddenly without the slightest sign.

Just then, a voice rose up without warning in Chen Changsheng’s sea of consciousness.

“Walk a little farther.

“Do not let the capital see.

“Do not let the world see.

“Do not let me see.”