Journey of the Fate Destroying Emperor

Chapter 1977: The Omnicube Trial II: Dao Heart & Mind

”He probably thought he could perfect his Dao Quintessence by absorbing as much knowledge as possible, and the result? He turned a slave to knowledge,” Wu Hong thought, sighing deeply.

The pursuit of the Dao is ultimately an act of defying Heaven. Someone might spend countless cycles of trillions of years cultivating, slowly approaching the end of the path, only to realize they had gone astray. Whatʼs the correct course of action after reaching such a bypass?

The immediate, easy answer is to start over. However, thatʼs easier said than done. All powerful cultivators have their achievements because of unwavering confidence that borders on delusion; that characteristic has allowed them to survive the darkest of times; that virtue has driven them to keep going no matter the situation.

So, 99% of the time, when they are confronted with the idea that their Dao—their path—might be wrong, their first and usually only instinct is to deny this truth. They have all the confidence in themselves and their Dao —after all, it had brought them this far — so how could it be wrong?

”Ultimately, they will conclude that the world is wrong, or in Gu Changʼanʼs case, they were not doing enough,” Wu Hong thought. She decided to treat Gu Changʼan as a cautionary tale. After all, who knew if her path had any problems? For all she knew, the issue might manifest while she was sanctifying, or even worse, right before transcendence.

Wu Hong exhaled to control her emotions. Ignoring Gu Changʼan, she continued her journey of delving into this ocean of knowledge. All attempts of testing how much time had passed seemed to fail in this dimension, so Wu Hong didnʼt even try. Anyway, she had an infinite lifespan, and her only worry was the Origin Seal Continent, her friends, and Wang Wei. If too much time passed, they might worry and come looking for her, but that might not be a bad thing.

Bang!

While Wu Hong was deep in a book and Gu Changʼan was still mechanically remembering things, the dimension trembled slightly. Before they could react, all the books disappeared, leaving them in this white space without borders. Then, like before, a string of characters appeared in the air: [Participant 1 (Wu Hong): Victory]

”Why?” Gu Changʼan asked, his voice cold and his expression emotionless. ”The amount of books I —”

”Do you even need to ask why? Look at the state youʼre in.”

The All-Knowing Emperor paused. His first instinct was to dismiss Wu Hongʼs words, but a part of him warned that listening to her might not be a bad thing. So, he began observing his status from another point of view. Gu Changʼan was horrified. His [Existence] was slowly being morphed into an entity similar to Heavenly or Grand Dao: emotionless, mechanically processing a directive embedded in his essence—gathering knowledge.

The shock immediately jolted Gu Changʼanʼs system awake. He closed his eyes to undo the damage as soon as possible. It wasnʼt too late now that he had caught the problem. Wu Hong glanced at him and calmly waited. Since the cube wasnʼt interfering, she had no choice but to wait as well.

Ten minutes later, Gu Changʼan opened his eyes, his expression more expressive than before. However, he swiftly returned to a calm, almost stoic expression. Glancing at Wu Hong, a glint flashed in his eyes for a brief moment before disappearing.

”My path is not wrong. Maybe not as solid and versatile as hers, but itʼs not wrong. I just need to find the right method, and I can perfect my source.”

Wu Hong immediately noticed the aura of confidence emanating from the latter, but she didnʼt say anything. The cube had conveyed more writings.

[Trial 2: Dao Heart & Mind]

[Rule 1: No attacking or interfering with other participants]

[Rule 2: Foreign assistance is allowed.]

As soon as these words materialized, the two of them found themselves standing in front of an enormous abyss with no sight of the bottom. Wu Hong frowned as she looked at the endless dark corridor that seemed to lead straight to hell; a creepy sense of doom assaulted her senses.

”Oh, thatʼs terrifying.”

”Lady Ai? Youʼre back?”

”Iʼve been here all this time, but I just couldnʼt speak or interact with you.”

”I see. By the way, any chance your senses are still connected to the outside?”

”Iʼm sorry.”

”Itʼs fine,” Wu Hong said. Since she couldnʼt check on the outside situation, there was no need to remain too focused on it. ”Can you detect anything about this abyss? All my detection spells are useless.”

”Mine too, and I think thatʼs the point.”

Wu Hong nodded. ”So, a mind test. But what is it testing exactly? Fear of death? The unknown? Or something else? And why did it allow outside help?”

”I have no idea. But letʼs see if we can figure out the point of this test together.”

”Youʼre right. I think —”

”Hm? Where is this? Y-Y-You!”

Wu Hong turned to the voice and immediately squinted: Three Virtue Saint and Five Element Harmony Saint.

”Impossible!” Three Virtue yelled. ”Iʼve escaped your control.”

Gu Changʼan coldly looked at these two. Now that he didnʼt have the cube forcefully absorbing his power, he had the power to deal with these two ants trying to rebel against their master. Ignoring their horrified faces, Gu Changʼan first pointed a finger at Five Element Harmony, who sighed deeply.

”I knew this day would come,” the Taoist Priest uttered. The universe operated on the laws of cause and effect. All his actions back then —including silently supporting Three Virtueʼs actions—would be paid for today. Closing his eyes, he accepted his fate.

A plethora of arrays and lights entered Five Elementʼs body. Then, his aura rapidly changed, becoming calmer, more stable, rigid, and mechanical. And when he opened his eyes again, only the cold and emptiness of obedience remained.

”Did he…”

”Wiped out his intelligence and turned him into a puppet? Yes,” Lady Ai said.

”Can he still be saved?”

”No. Heʼs dead. Even if after killing Gu Changʼan, heʼll be nothing but a soulless puppet.”

Wu Hong nodded, but didnʼt say anything else.

”Donʼt feel bad for him; this is the price of taking a shortcut in the Saint Path.”

”Who says Iʼm feeling bad for him? I was just thinking how to best utilize them after I kill Gu Changʼan.”

Lady Ai was momentarily speechless. ”Well, itʼs always good to be pragmatic.”

”Your turn,” Gu Changʼan said coldly.

”No, you canʼt do this to me.”

”Stop barking. Itʼs annoying.” Gu Changʼan released an unknown power that sealed Three Virtueʼs mouth. Then, as he did to Five Elements, he began to inject all kinds of arrays and powers into the latterʼs body.

Boom! A golden dragon flew out of Three Virtueʼs body.

”No, no, I refused to accept such an ending.”

Gu Changʼan furrowed his brow. ”Power of Destiny? What a pointless struggle.” He immediately raised the intensity of his techniques.

”No, no, no, I canʼt die like this. Divine Seal Empress, save me, and Iʼll be loyal to you. As long as you donʼt take my free will, Iʼll follow you until the end of time.”

”Iʼm sorry, but I canʼt intervene.”

”Is my loyalty not enough? I have other values. I can introduce you to the Infinite Exchange Hub and be your guide. I also know of an inheritance from a Second Step Qi Path Saint. Thatʼs how I discovered the Qi Path Cultivation System. His inheritance should still have countless rare resources.”

”Do you think heʼs telling the truth?”

”About the inheritance? Probably not,” Lady Ai said. ”However, his act of swearing loyalty? Well, youʼd be a fool to believe him.”

”Itʼs not that it matters anyway.”

”True.”

”Is that not enough?” Three Virtue asked. With each passing second, his Destiny Dragon was rapidly being consumed. At this rate, he wonʼt last even half a minute. ”I know a Qi Path Inheritance might not mean much to you, but there are other ways you can benefit. You can —”

”Stop wasting your breath. She wonʼt help you.”

”I —”

”Heʼs right: I canʼt help you,” Wu Hong said. ”The rules do not permit it.” Three Virtue finally noticed the words floating in the air. Despair! Endless Despair! Those few words single-handedly destroyed all of Three Virtueʼs hope. Gu Changʼan sensed it immediately and acted. The golden dragon roared, trying to awaken its owner, but Three Virtueʼs eyes could not move from these words; the creature tried a few times with no result. Finally, it turned into a beam of light that entered Three Virtueʼs forehead, forcefully jolting him awake.

Three Virtue immediately realized his current state: it was too late. Death was already standing behind him, breathing down his neck. And unfortunately, there was nothing he could do about it — except maybe solve a few minor regrets.

”Divine Seal Empress, can you do me a favor? I promise it will be worth your while.”

”Speak.”

”Save my holy land. I donʼt need you to ensure their prosperity; just ensure they can recruit normally and preserve their identity.”

”And what can I get in return?”

”My Hub Token. I left it in the holy land; Iʼll tell you how to get it without any issue.”

”Very well.”