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Meanwhile, in the Outside, Han Nan’s gaze sharpened like a sword fresh out of its sheath. His gaze was terrifying to behold, especially when he said the word “seize.” Something about the way he said it gave Ye Zichen the sense that in the near future, the lay of the Upper Three Realms was about to change irrevocably in a sea of blood. 

Seizing celestial fate would lead to war. No one would be stupid enough to just obediently hand it over.

Especially Gu Li….

He was one of heaven’s two chosen emperors too.

If he had to seize celestial fate, the two of them would inevitably fight. He and Gu Li were old adversaries, and based on his understanding of Gu Li, his rival would have long since prepared by now. Gu Li was likely waiting for him already. 

No, it was even more likely that Gu Li was preparing to take the initiative to attack.

Even as Ye Zichen was lost in thought, Han Nan’s explanation continued, “The third era is nearing its end. When the time comes, we can take advantage of the fight between the Upper Three Realms. All you need to do is seize the other half of the Emperor Star’s celestial fate. And that’s not all; you can’t let Zhou Wu’s celestial fate slip past you either.”

“Zhou Wu? The God Emperor?” Ye Zichen arched his brows.

“Transcendence requires the complete celestial fate of the Emperor Star. Although what Zhou Wu took once belonged to the Five Elements Great Emperor, it’s still the Emperor Star’s celestial fate. I cannot say for sure whether what he took is considered rightfully yours, but just in case, you should seize it, too. In any event, that celestial fate was never his to begin with. He’s just a petty little thief.”

It seemed that Han Nan’s impression of those who seized celestial fate that didn’t belong to them was extremely poor. He’d disdained Zhou Wu from the start, and now he’d even called the God Emperor “a petty little thief.”

He was slandering the glorious God Emperor, one of the world’s top experts, behind his back. How would Zhou Wu feel if he knew about this?

But this worked out perfectly for Ye Zichen. He was stained with the Five Elements Great Emperor’s karma, so clashing with the God Emperor was inevitable.

If the Outside was willing to help, then his way forward would become far clearer and simpler. Furthermore, in the process of seizing Zhou Wu’s celestial fate, he could avenge the Five Elements Great Emperor!  

“But I must warn you that seizing celestial fate cannot happen overnight. We want to seize their celestial fate, but they definitely want to seize yours, too.”

Ye Zichen’s heart shook; he knew Han Nan was right.

Given the situation, everyone wanted to transcend.

But there was something Ye Zichen had never understood. Even with Gu Zichen and countless experts’ aid, he at best managed to keep up with Gu Li. He’d never pulled ahead. 

What exactly was up with that guy?

Could it be that he had a reclusive old monster standing behind him and guiding him?

...

“Senior, I’ve disappointed you.” In a demonic lair, Gu Li knelt against the ground. A seated, ethereal figure sat before him. Upon closer inspection, the figure looked about seventy percent similar to Gu Li.

The only real difference was that the seated figure was a good deal older. He seemed bitter that Gu Li wasn’t living up to his hopes, that Gu Li refused to change. From his sunken eyes and prominent cheekbones, it seemed clear than in life, the elder hadn’t been the righteous sort.

But when he looked at Gu Li, he merely sighed wistfully. He seemed to have accepted his fate. He shook his head and said, “I told you not to get involved with Kui Lin. Why didn’t you listen?”

Gu Li, who was still kneeling on the ground, watched the aggrieved and mournful elder gnash his teeth. Gu Li was the type who looked down on just about anybody. He was always scheming, vicious, manipulative… but before this elder, he wholeheartedly played the role of junior, treating the old man with all the respect an esteemed senior deserved.

He didn’t want to see the elder sigh. It made his heart ache. “Senior, An Lu is just too important to me. She’s the woman I love most. I can’t just abandon her to her fate.”

“I know.” The elder sighed, showing no sign of rebuke. “Perhaps this is our fate. I thought that if I stood beside you and guided you, I could change your destiny. Little did I know, you still encountered An Lu.”

He seemed to understand Gu Li’s feelings as if he’d been through everything himself.

“A single cycle lasts 129, 600, 000 years. Each era is identical, and everything that happened once will play out once more. I didn’t believe it at first, but now…. I do.”

“Senior!”

“Perhaps we truly aren’t fated to transcend. Everything…. Was set in stone long ago. From the moment you first encountered An Lu, your fate was sealed.”

“Senior, you….”

“Treasure your time with her while you can,” said the elder. With a sigh, his ethereal body drifted further into the cave.

Gu Li knelt in place for over an hour. Finally, he gnashed his teeth, bowed towards the cave, and left.

Shortly after he disappeared, the elder’s ghostly body reappeared. He gently rubbed the clean bright walls…

“Back then, in order to avenge you, I offered my celestial fate to another. Then, in order to revive you, I stole it back. He died, but you didn’t come back to life. I died too…. After the era transcended, I became its sinner, but I refused to accept it. I found my former self, but he’s walking the same path I once did. Now...my only hope is this wall will never hold your last words.”

….

When the thought entered Ye Zichen’ mind, he couldn’t get it out of his head.

It wasn’t impossible!

Otherwise, how could Gu Li possibly keep seizing the initiative? How could he know so many things Ye Zichen didn’t?

Ye Zichen knew that, in terms of raw IQ, he was no Einstein. Still, he was well within the normal range. There had to be some sort of explanation for why Gu Li knew so much more than him.

The more he thought about it, the scarier it seemed!

It was entirely possible that an old monster stood behind Gu Li, and that he was at least on the same level as Gu Zichen. 

Could it be that Gu Li’s backer had crossed over from a parallel dimension and found his plane’s Gu Li?

But based on what Gu Zichen said, back in his parallel dimension, everyone had already died.

Then….

Had he come from a different direction?

Gu Zichen had had a lateral shift, so….

Did Gu Li make a vertical shift instead? Was that possible? 

Now that he’d arrived in the Outside, Ye Zichen saw it too: everything was exactly the same as the Modern Realm, except the Modern Realm hadn’t transcended. This was the transcendent Outside, so everyone was a capable fighter.

If the Modern Realm transcended, would it become like the Outside?

And he’d seen it: everyone here was exactly the same as back in the Modern Realm, from their appearances to their names and personalities. Even the buildings and street names were the same...

“Uncle Han.” Something seemed to occur to Ye Zichen, and his expression suddenly contorted. He gazed lifelessly at Han Nan, who arched his brows.

“What is it?” 

“There’s something I’d like to ask you!”

“Go on!”  

“The Modern World, the place I used to live, looked exactly the same as the Outside. It’s not just the buildings. Even the people….. are exactly the same. What I want to know is, was the Modern Realm…. Related to the Outside in some way?”