“You heard me right,” Gao Wenyuan said with a faint smile.

"But... how is that possible?"

Having recovered from his shock, Shen Qian asked hesitantly.

Gao Wenyuan was referring to Ling Tianhou of this era. At first glance, it seems to make no problem, but upon closer examination, it becomes somewhat terrifying.

If we know that Ling Tianhou will be thirty-five years old fourteen years from now, how old will he be at this time?

Twenty-one!

Could it be that Qiao Tianliang was already a top-tier noble at this time?

If not, how could the other party have the right to make Lao Gao say something like "obstruction"? But if they did, it would not be consistent with past history.

At least according to Liu Changqing's description, Qiao Tianliang at this age should still be competing with him for love, and revolving around that girl named Ren Lingxi.

"When I accepted Changqing as my disciple, Qiao Tianliang was also present, but I did not choose him."

Old Gao took a sip of tea, and instead slowly began to recount the past, "Do you know why?"

"Hmm...malicious?"

After thinking for a moment, Chen gave the only answer he could think of.

Unless there are special reasons, no one would bury a genius, let alone someone like Gao Wenyuan. So, the only reason must be this.

"He concealed it well, but I sensed a fleeting murderous intent towards Changqing. Beneath his seemingly sunny exterior, his inner world was already filled with hatred and indifference, an abyss from which no light could be seen."

Gao Wenyuan smiled, then suddenly sighed, "But later, I regretted it."

"Why?" Shen Qian was momentarily stunned.

"Because I often think that if I had put aside my prejudices and tried my best to change the evil thoughts in his heart, perhaps... his fate would have changed, and many things would have changed as well," Gao Wenyuan said, somewhat lost in thought.

"What happened next?" Shen Qian realized that this was Qiao Tianliang's biggest secret and immediately pressed for an answer.

"He's dead."

The three words Gao Wenyuan uttered in a calm voice left Shen Qian completely bewildered.

Qiao Tianliang is dead?!

He stood there stunned for several seconds before Chen Qian exclaimed in shock, "Teacher, you mean..."

"It's not entirely accurate to say he's dead, because no one, including those who know him best, would notice anything unusual about him."

Gao Wenyuan said softly, "The most terrifying thing in this world is not death, but that someone silently takes your place in life and steals everything from you, including your loved ones, your siblings, all your love and hate..."

Gao Wenyuan spoke in a casual tone, but Shen Qian got goosebumps just listening to him.

How bizarre is it for someone else to completely replace your life?

Unheard of.

"...Is this also the power of 'Tao'?" Shen Qian thought and thought, but he didn't know which "Tao" could do such a terrifying thing.

"Among the supreme laws, there is a 'path' called cause and effect, which some people also call... 'destiny'."

Gao Wenyuan quickly revealed the mystery: "It is difficult to evaluate the direct combat power of this 'path', but it is the most unpredictable 'path' among the seven supreme laws. As long as you control this 'path', it is easy to steal the life of a mere teenager."

boom!

As if struck by a sudden enlightenment, Chen Qian stood there stunned, and in an instant, many of the questions that had puzzled him before were answered.

Upon closer examination, aren't all those coincidences simply a matter of cause and effect?

Only in this way can one remain completely unaware.

So who controls this "path"?

Looking across China, one name immediately comes to mind.

"The Book of Changes!"

Chen Qian took a deep breath, his emotions a jumbled mess. "I should have realized this sooner... If it weren't for him, how many people would have this ability..."

The main reason why the system hadn't suspected anything before sinking was that it hadn't been alerted at all, which was actually quite illogical. But if it was a top-level king who had mastered the Way of Cause and Effect who was manipulating things behind the scenes, then it would be perfectly understandable that the system was completely unaware.

"So Qiao Tianliang is... Zhou Yi Wang's alter ego?"

After thinking for a moment, Shen Qian asked this question.

"It's both right and wrong."

Gao Wenyuan smiled faintly, "Strictly speaking, a clone shares a soul with the original body. When the clone is damaged, the original body will inevitably be damaged as well. But Qiao Tianliang and Zhou Yiwang are different."

"Although Zhou Yiwang is behind Qiao Tianliang, he has his own independent personality and destiny, as well as independent thinking ability. If we cannot find the clues from the source, no one except an Emperor-level expert can see the connection between the two."

"Moreover, even if you kill Qiao Tianliang, it won't actually have much impact on King Zhou Yi."

"This...is truly terrifying!" Shen Qian remained silent for a long time after hearing this before finally letting out a long breath.

King Zhou Yi himself was already at the pinnacle of kings and nobles, with unfathomable strength, and he even had a "clone" that existed as an independent personality!

What's even more terrifying is that even this clone has reached a level that most people can only look up to.

A top-tier nobleman at the age of thirty-five, hailed as the first genius after the nine kings of the first generation of China!

Who could have imagined that he was merely a pawn in the hands of King Zhou Yi... the kind that could be discarded without a second thought.

Shen Qian now understood why King Zhou Yi was able to use the fluctuations of the Chaos Bell to find the entrance to the River of Time, and why he was able to directly block his own River of Time...

Thinking this, Chen Qian flipped his hand and took out the river snail that had already dimmed.

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