Chapter 81: Chapter 80: The Human Emperor’s War to Hunt the Heavens, Seeking Heavenly Fate for All Beings

"Fellow Daoist Ruogu, Fellow Daoist Shen."

Qi Sibai sat upright in front of the low table in the room, smiling and nodding at the two people who walked in, making a gesture of invitation.

In front of him, two cups of tea were already placed, steam curling up, with the temperature just right.

By the looks of it, the tea had been brewed for a while.

He had also been waiting for a while.

Chen Kuang stepped forward, sat opposite him, and bluntly asked:

"Brother Qi, did you already know that I would encounter that Demon Sword?"

Qi Sibai smiled and said, "Didn’t I tell Fellow Daoist Ruogu earlier, it doesn’t matter if ability is limited, having the heart is sufficient."

He picked up the teacup, took a sip, and leisurely said, "Now it seems, my address wasn’t left in vain."

Chen Kuang was speechless.

He was puzzled; as a mere small fry in the Enlightenment Realm, searching for a Demon Sword was like finding a needle in a haystack. Yet, Qi Sibai had specifically given him the address, clearly having a deep obsession with this Demon Sword.

It turned out he had already seen something coming.

Which makes sense, the Observatory was a group of fortune-tellers to begin with...

Thinking of this, Chen Kuang raised his eyebrows again, but it seemed Qi Sibai had not divined anything about other details beyond the Demon Sword... like Chen Kuang’s true identity.

What Qi Sibai said next also indirectly confirmed some of his thoughts.

Qi Sibai looked at him, curiously asking, "Speaking of which, as soon as I left, Brother Lin’s Tower Ship got into trouble. I vaguely saw that the sword light seemed to be the work of the Mystic God Daoist Sect, but couldn’t figure out the reason for their sudden action."

"I initially thought this matter was only related to the Wind and Rain Pavilion and the Civilization Official, who were all silenced that day..."

"But later, when I went to find Brother Lin, who should have been a victim in this, he mysteriously kept silent, which puzzled me even more."

"Fellow Daoist Ruogu, you were present back then. Can you enlighten me?"

Chen Kuang retorted, "You can predict I would encounter the Demon Sword, but couldn’t figure this out?"

Qi Sibai smiled wryly, "Fellow Daoist Ruogu, do you know why the Observatory has declined?"

The primary duty of the Observatory was to observe fate, record fate, and pursue fate... This was indeed a powerful ability. If it still existed, it wouldn’t have declined.

But a skill doesn’t just disappear for no reason, especially since the Observatory hasn’t suffered a catastrophic loss of inheritance.

Chen Kuang felt something stir in his heart and frowned, "You... can no longer predict fate?"

"Yes and no."

"Fate, which the Celestial Dao evolves into, is the destiny of all things in the world."

Qi Sibai swirled the tea in his cup and said in a deep voice, "The Observatory has existed since ancient times, with each of us taking the fate we observe as our duty, pursuing it for a lifetime until it vanishes at some point, like a line cut by an invisible pair of scissors."

He made a "cutting" gesture with two fingers.

"Fate, to us, was originally such a clear line, with a beginning and an end."

"But ever since the end of the Ancient Era with the Heaven-Hunting War, the ten thousand ancient nations disappeared entirely, and the sects rose... the Observatory has been unable to see the beginning and end of this line."

"We can only vaguely see some offshoots, gaining some omens, like when I saw Fellow Daoist Ruogu, I immediately knew you would come to me regarding the Demon Sword."

"This sounds miraculous, but in reality, it is no different from other sects proficient in the Qiankun Art of Divination."

Qi Sibai shook his head and sighed, "The Observatory has thus gradually faded into obscurity among the sects."

It seemed Qi Sibai had been holding it in for a long time, and finally finding someone to vent to, he rattled on for quite some time.

Chen Kuang seemed to understand, yet not quite.

He vaguely knew about the "Heaven-Hunting War," which was some fragmented information provided by Huo Hengxuan’s experiential memories.

In the Ancient Era, before sects were prominent, countless nations stood side by side, and those nations also had dragon-vein fortunes, much stronger than now.

People prayed to the heavens to share the celestial fate as national fortune.

The people of a nation could use national fortune to cultivate; the stronger the national fortune, the stronger the people, and thus, numerous ancient powerhouses were born.

Among the strongest was the Human Emperor—Shuo.

But for some unknown reason, suddenly one day, the Human Emperor united the nations to conduct an unprecedented grand sacrifice, then actually declared war on the Celestial Dao, intending to seize celestial fate for all!

This became known in history as the "Heaven-Hunting War."

Today, no one knows what the result of this grand battle was, only that after it, the ancient nations disappeared, the Ancient Era ended, and the era of sects began.

Consequently, it is widely believed now that Human Emperor Shuo lost to the Celestial Dao.

However, the words of Qi Sibai seemed to suggest another possibility.

If the Celestial Dao were intact, how could fate become so unclear?

Qi Sibai smiled wryly, "Actually, I also know that reviving the Observatory is already impossible; it’s not something I alone can accomplish."

"However, the part of fate I can see is still something I should strive to pursue."

Chen Kuang asked curiously, "What if this fate turns out to be empty in the end? Wouldn’t that be meaningless?"

Qi Sibai was stunned for a moment, then laughed: "I did it, so that’s the meaning."

This guy is still an idealist...

Knowing Qi Sibai wasn’t lying, Chen Kuang smiled and said:

"I do know the truth of that day. Coincidentally, it is related to the earlier discussion about Chen Kuang."

Qi Sibai was taken aback, "Chen Kuang?"

Chen Kuang nodded and said, "You see, Brother Qi, on that day, Chen Kuang was on the Tower Ship. The Wind and Rain Pavilion’s Di Wu intended to make a move on him, but the Mystic God Daoist Sect intervened."

Qi Sibai asked in confusion, "Isn’t the Mystic God Daoist Sect usually neutral?"

Chen Kuang seriously responded, "Indeed they are, but the Mystic God Daoist Sect is nonetheless a righteous sect, and naturally they can’t stand some people abusing their status and position to distort facts and act recklessly."

"As for Brother Lin, though he is a high disciple of Freedom Mountain, he probably does not wish to get involved in the feud between those two families."

Shen Xingzhu: "..."

She intervened for Shen Meinan, killing a member of the Martial Saint Pavilion, which indeed was a significant conflict.

But since Shen Xingzhu was a Daoist, and Di Wu was just a Half-Step Grandmaster, the Mystic God Daoist Sect would naturally handle this trouble for her.

What Chen Kuang said in two sentences was correct, yet those sentences were not actually connected...

Qi Sibai was indeed misled, contemplating something in silence, then said:

"That day on the Tower Ship, besides the people from the Wind and Rain Pavilion, and those who boarded mid-journey, it was only you, Fellow Daoist Ruogu..."

He looked at Chen Kuang.

Chen Kuang cupped his hand in salute and smiled: "I feel quite apologetic for having overtaken Brother Qi’s thirty-third rank."

Qi Sibai was speechless for a while, then raised the teacup in front of him:

"Now, I am somewhat convinced."

"Ruogu—now it’s right to call you Brother Chen, where did you see the Demon Sword?"

Chen Kuang treated tea as liquor, drank a cup to apologize, and was about to speak when he heard a commotion from outside.

He turned to look and saw in the pavilion below, surprisingly, were Chen Ning and those scholars with him.

At this moment, they were united in a common cause, led by Chen Ning, apparently confronting a young man.

Qi Sibai glanced over and exclaimed, "This person..."

Chen Kuang asked, "Brother Qi, you know him?"

Qi Sibai replied, "That’s the son of Fan Hailong, the Gang Leader of the Cao Bang in Jishao County, Fan Chuan."

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by lotustale.com