Chapter 450 The Shadow of Fate
"You've offended the Fate-Staining Demon?"
While surprised, I searched my mind for any connection between Yuchi and Mingzhuo. Aside from their opposing ideologies, I couldn't find any reason for Mingzhuo to target Yuchi. The two had essentially no prior dealings.
Moreover, Yuchi is Fazheng's right-hand man, and he even came to invite me on Fazheng's behalf in the past. Although he is only at the Great Completion level, he is highly valued by Fazheng due to his special status. Based on our previous exchanges, I even believe that he may possess value no less than that of Dawuchang in terms of operations and logistics, and may very well occupy an extremely important position in Fazheng's future plans.
Unlike other lone wolves, Fazheng highly values the collective and the opinions of others. His failure to avenge even a trusted confidant like Yuchi might discourage many. If Mingzhuo were to truly harm Yuchi, Fazheng was entirely capable of severing ties with him.
So, putting aside what Mingzhuo's true intentions are, why did Yuchi not seek help from Fazheng, but instead come to me for help?
Yu Chi revealed a bitter expression and said, "It's not that I provoked Ming Zhuo... it's because Shen Zhao died."
"What does this have to do with divine illumination?" I wondered.
"Do you remember that Mingzhuo gave all the fragments of the Divine Seal he possessed to Shenzhao?" Yuchi asked. "The power of the fragments of the Divine Seal has endless possibilities, and it may even solve the problem of Mingzhuo's lifespan countdown. Yet he willingly placed them in Shenzhao's hands. Do you know why?"
"It's because if I keep fragments of the divine seal, Xuanming might cause me trouble again," I said.
“That’s only one aspect,” Yuchi said. “In the end, Xuanming’s goal is just the fragment of the Divine Seal. So what if Mingzhuo accidentally reveals that he possesses the fragment of the Divine Seal?”
“Unlike you, Xuanming won’t spend ten years wearing down Mingzhuo. He only needs to get his hands on the fragments of the Divine Seal. And during this time, even if Mingzhuo is killed a few times or a dozen times, he can simply pat his butt and go home to do his own thing after he is resurrected.”
"One of the conditions on which Mingzhuo transferred the Divine Seal Fragment to Shenzhao was that he hoped Shenzhao would take over his research project and develop a technology to solve the lifespan countdown problem using the power of the Divine Seal Fragment, while he would look for a solution from another direction. This is because Shenzhao is far superior to Mingzhuo in terms of research on the power of the Divine Seal Fragment."
The information he provided matched what I had seen and heard. Shenzhao was a "ruthless person" who was able to break through the gray mist on his first entry into the Void Realm, which shows that he had conducted in-depth research on the power of the Divine Seal Fragments in the past.
At the same time, I also figured out why a turbid fate might be unfavorable to Yuchi.
“Now that Shenzhao is dead, I can no longer help him with his technology research; he himself has also been rebuffed by me and unable to figure out how to open the Gate of Naraku through Asahi.” I analyzed, “Therefore, even knowing the potential threat from Xuanming, he might still pick up the task of using the power of the divine seal fragments to overcome his lifespan countdown…”
"For this reason, fragments of the divine seal are necessary."
"The problem is that all the fragments of the divine seal that Shenzhao possessed during his lifetime were either given to you and me, or were taken away by the Lord of the Divine Seals... or rather, were all taken away by Xuanming at the last moment."
"However, judging from the barrier set up by the Divination Master at the Luoshan headquarters and the scene of Shenzhao's death, Xuanming himself did not enter the Luoshan headquarters that night, but merely transmitted his power to the scene of Shenzhao's death. At the same time, his power did not affect the array set up at the scene, which was obviously using the power of the divine seal fragments. The divine seal fragments that should have been placed inside the array were obviously moved away by unknown people."
Yu Chi's expression grew even more bitter as he continued, "His trusted confidant was in charge of sorting through Shenzhao's relics. Ming Zhuo has probably already searched that area thoroughly, but he couldn't possibly have found anything there. So, he'll inevitably suspect someone next..."
I said, “This person had close ties with Shenzhao during his lifetime and seems to have done many shady things; and after Shenzhao’s death, he is still alive and well, and is now having a suspicious conversation with me in a secluded place like the Great Impermanence Tomb. What’s worse is that this person really did receive fragments of the divine seal from Shenzhao during his lifetime, and there may even be traces of his involvement in the design of the magic array that Shenzhao set up in his home.”
“Yes…” Yu Chi said awkwardly, “That person is me.”
"Just yesterday, while I was studying the fragments of the divine seal within my own grand formation, I suddenly had a premonition of impending doom. I immediately realized that this was likely a sign that Ming Zhuo was about to attack me; he was probably contemplating how to kidnap me while simultaneously dealing with Fa Zheng's wrath..."
"Honestly, I was almost scared to death."
You've startled me too; someone at the Great Completion level can actually sense the thoughts of the Great Impermanence from afar.
The Great Impermanence is, in a sense, the embodiment of natural disasters. With a single thought, it can cause signs of change in nature, causing countless birds and beasts to fall into terror as if sensing the signs of an impending earthquake, not to mention the extremely perceptive Witcher. As long as it is consciously concealed, the Great Impermanence's killing intent can be imperceptible to any living being. Even if a Witcher who is not the Great Impermanence possesses powerful divination skills, he will not be able to detect the signs of impending doom.
Even I wouldn't dare say I could always detect the murderous intent of someone like Mingzhuo, who habitually hides behind the scenes and does evil. Yet Yuchi was able to detect it. Although I don't know if it was due to the support of his so-called great formation, it's simply unbelievable.
I can understand why he didn't seek help from Fa Zheng on this matter. Since I still need his help to contact Xiao Wan in the future, I naturally agreed to his request.
He immediately breathed a sigh of relief.
“…Sometimes I don’t understand why someone like Mingzhuo, who likes to hide his true identity, can have so many followers,” I said. “I heard that even after I defeated him once, he still has a large number of demon hunters who believe in him.”
Yu Chi said, "It's not just a matter of 'numerous numbers.' According to statistics, among all the current Da Wuchang in Luoshan, he has the largest number of followers."
"Is that so?" This is the first time I've heard this. "I may have some negative stereotypes about Mingzhuo, but even from an objective point of view, Mingzhuo isn't exactly a character with charisma, is he?"
Certainly, great power can attract those who admire strength, and a stubborn and self-willed nature can be seen as a form of leadership from another perspective. However, there are also those who are even more powerful than the turbid Ming, and it is difficult to say that the leadership formed by an autocratic style is of high quality.
In terms of strength and achievements, the Old Fist God is the most powerful and unpredictable in Luoshan; in terms of wisdom and seniority, the Divination Master is second to none; in terms of ideals and integrity, Fazheng is the first person that comes to mind.
I really can't see how Mingzhuo, as a god, can compare to the other Great Impermanences. Fazheng would still feel sad and sigh when he saw the demon hunters who were killed by the aftershocks of the Great Impermanences' power in the battle of the Humanity Division's main stronghold, but Mingzhuo didn't even bother to look at them - you should know that those were his subordinates who he personally brought to the battlefield.
“Because Mingzhuo is the only Great Impermanence in Luoshan who has signed a contract with the will of Naraku.” Yuchi said unsurprisedly, “In the past, the demon hunters of Luoshan considered it an honor to be able to freely enter and leave the world of the living and the world of the dead, and they worshipped the will of Heaven that existed in the afterlife.”
"After being unable to continue entering and leaving the afterlife, many demon hunters turned their regret to Mikoto, trying to find psychological compensation in him. Because Mikoto has the closest relationship with the afterlife, and he will return no matter how many times he dies, he is sometimes regarded as the embodiment of Naraku's will in the world of the living. Thus, Mikoto, who once had few believers, suddenly became the god with the most believers."
"Although the trend of modern human rights thought has had some influence on Luoshan, traditional thought still dominates the mainstream in Luoshan. Against this background, the moral flaws of Mingzhuo are ignored by many people. Because in the traditional thought of Luoshan, since Mingzhuo is a deity, he should not be criticized by the moral system, and he himself is the basic reference frame of the moral system."
“If the existing moral system criticizes the corrupted as evil, then the problem is not with the corrupted, but with the moral system itself. It must be readjusted to a moral system that can evaluate the corrupted as a good god in order to be correct.”
Presumably because his deceased wife was the Great Impermanence, Yu Chi didn't seem like an ordinary demon hunter; his attitude towards the Great Impermanence was remarkably calm. And I couldn't help but once again marvel at the Great Impermanence's transcendent status in Luoshan. If I were an ordinary demon hunter newly joined Luoshan, I would probably be extremely disgusted by this set of values.
But now that I'm one of the many impermanent beings, I don't care anymore; whatever happens, happens. Let others worry about these things. Even if I've truly completed my ideological reform, it doesn't matter.
If it were Zhu Shi who wanted to do it, I would even actively support her.
Furthermore, since Mingzhuo wants the Divine Seal fragments, I also need to remind Mazao and Zhushi, as they also possess Divine Seal fragments. Although they already have a strong sense of secrecy, when it comes to Mingzhuo, it wouldn't be unreasonable to raise their guard even higher.
"The reason I can't ask Fazheng for help is because if I tell him, I'll definitely have to hand over all the Divine Seal fragments I have," Yuchi continued to explain. "I need Divine Seal fragments, and I even need more..."
"Is this to defeat the old boxing god?" I asked.
Yu Chi nodded: "...Yes."
Although the exact details of the "method to become strong enough to defeat the Old Fist God" that the Lord of the Divine Seal traded to Yuchi are unknown, it is easy to imagine that to achieve such a miraculous leap to the heavens, one would need a divine artifact like a fragment of the Divine Seal.
I casually asked him how many he needed, and he hesitated. Seeing this, I withdrew my question.
It seems he needs a considerable quantity, to the point that this quantity might make me wary. Although probably no one really cares about the fragment competition proposed by the Lord of the Divine Seal, everyone can only grasp their own thoughts. As for what others are really thinking, you can't see into someone's heart.
"...Perhaps it's not really necessary to collect that many God Seal fragments." He seemed to be making amends for his earlier performance. "If we knew about the Old Fist God's special abilities, we could make targeted preparations before actually engaging him in battle, and the number of God Seal fragments needed could be reduced..."
"The old boxing god actually has 'special abilities'?" I was very surprised.
(End of this chapter)
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com