Library of Heaven's Path 2: Eternal Fate of the Heavens
Chapter 504 - 139: Mountains Are High, Waters Are Long, Each Find Peace (End of This Volume)

He finally understood why he kept losing consecutively!

Even though he practiced the Power Destiny, it was only Tier 1. After all, his father was the Controller, and he only controlled part of a tributary, at most considered Tier 2, inherently suppressed.

"If I could kill him and reclaim the Eternal Heart and this Destiny... What does it matter if I don't want the Crown Prince's position?"

After the shock, intense excitement flashed in Prince Yuanqing's eyes.

His main purpose for wanting to inherit the throne is to fully master the First Level Destiny, to climb to the world's pinnacle, and both the Eternal Heart and the opponent's First Level Destiny met this condition.

So, this is his greatest opportunity, a chance to stand on equal footing with his father.

His eyes turned red immediately, and the Qi Fortune he purchased within began to burn wildly.

He couldn't bear to use it before, but now he no longer cared at all.

As long as he could obtain everything from the other party, he would undoubtedly stand at the pinnacle of the entire Source World, overlooking everyone.

"Empyrean Kong shi, go!"

These emotions flashed in his mind, and below, Zhang Xuan had finished killing the Executioner and had already reached Empyrean Kong shi. With a large hand, he severed various shackles on him, reached out to grab him, and was just about to bring him into the Suspended Realm when he felt a chill down his spine.

Paying no heed to continuing the rescue, his figure flickered.

Buzz!

The next moment, a cold, icy sword had appeared where he just stood. Were it not for the premonition from forging the Creation Jade Butterfly, it might have pierced through his chest by now.

"This is Prince Yuanqing's Chengde Sword, only second to Emperor Fusheng's Taie Sword, with immense power. If struck by it, it could cause damage to the soul, and even the Eternal Heart would have difficulty recovering!"

Frost Demon Lord's voice echoed in his mind.

Zhang Xuan squinted his eyes.

Even though the Eternal Heart allows his corpse to recover quickly after breaking, some formidable celestial treasures can suppress this ability.

This Chengde Sword is clearly such an artifact.

The shock in his heart hadn't ended when Chengde Sword flashed again, disappearing from its original spot, and the next moment stabbed straight at his chest. Zhang Xuan hurriedly dodged, but it was too close, and his arm was stabbed, blood gushing out.

Zhang Xuan immediately felt a peculiar force incessantly attacking his body, corroding his soul. This must be the hard-to-recover power that Frost Demon Lord talked about.

Swish, swish, swish, swish!

Knowing being stabbed several times might truly lead to death here, Zhang Xuan continuously dodged. However, his speed was fast, and Chengde Sword was even faster, as if it could predict his position every time, casually charging but always managing to hit him.

In just half a breath, over a dozen swords pierced his body, leaving wounds everywhere.

"It's the Qi Fortune!"

Predicting his escape direction once is good luck, but twice, thrice, continuously over ten times, it seems his previous guess was accurate. The Qi Fortune of the three thousand Hu Ben Army was borrowed by this prince.

Therefore, he could be so resourceful, making him extremely embarrassed.

"Having been stabbed multiple times, my body and nerves are affected, and my actions are already a bit sluggish..."

Knowing continuing like this might lead to death by a sword, Zhang Xuan's face turned grim.

It seems he underestimated the foundations of these powerful clans.

This Prince Yuanqing's cultivation might be inferior to his, but various artifacts surfaced one after another, coupled with being in the Law Heavenly Capital, Xuanji Sect's evaluation of a sure-death situation was indeed not an understatement.

The Buddhist Sect, Demon Sect, along with Prince Yuanqing, are about to reach him. Once they act together, even three of him couldn't withstand it. To save anyone, he could only seize this less than half a breath of time.

But with the Chengde Sword erratically stabbing here, there's simply no chance to rescue anyone.

"Unless..."

An idea emerged.

His eyes narrowed with a ruthless gleam, Zhang Xuan's figure flickered to a spot not far from Empyrean Kong shi, and this time instead of fleeing, he slightly tilted aside.

Whoosh!

The chasing Chengde Sword appeared again in front of him, piercing straight through his right arm, like an arrow lodged on it.

"This is the opportunity I've been waiting for..."

Zhang Xuan gritted his teeth as a sword qi appeared on his left hand, immediately severing his right arm while his spirit surged.

Whoosh!

The Chengde Sword, lodged in his right arm and seemingly unresponsive, was sucked into the Suspended Realm.

Under normal circumstances, to take away a celestial treasure, unless one's cultivation far surpasses the opponent, Zhang Xuan's current condition clearly couldn't achieve that, so he used his arm as bait, wrapping the Chengde Sword with his muscle for a short time, then took away his arm.

In doing so, this sword could no longer escape, easily captured by him.

It sounds simple, but it actually requires extremely high demands on the body and soul because any slight deviation might get the sword to pierce through the heart, dying on the spot.

Fortunately, it succeeded!

"Forge!"

With a thought communicating with the Suspended Realm, in a blink, the sword was forged into his celestial treasure.

Within the Suspended Realm, he is the ruler, and no matter what celestial treasure or item, as long as it doesn't possess the power to tear the Suspended Realm, it can be easily crushed by him.

Having forged the Chengde Sword, with no more threats, Zhang Xuan once again flew toward Empyrean Kong shi. At the same time, the Eternal Heart pulsated rapidly, and the Buddhist and Demon forces surged incessantly, and in a blink, an arm regenerated.

At this point, Zhang Xuan reached the Dragon-slaying Platform, stood in front of Empyrean Kong shi, and lifted him up.

Indeed, it's Empyrean Kong shi. Now he no longer possesses the strength he had before, looking exceptionally weary.

"Go!"

Grabbing Empyrean Kong shi's arm, Zhang Xuan lightly tapped his foot on the Dragon-slaying Platform, soaring up, and simultaneously turned to look: "Is your body alright? I'll take you away!"

After saying this, with a thought, he was about to pull him into the Suspended Realm.

"No need, I can fight too!"

Empyrean Kong shi shook his head.

"Very well, this sword is for you..."

Zhang Xuan pointed with a finger, and the Chengde Sword appeared, landing in the other's palm.

"Good!"

Empyrean Kong shi took the sword. His once weary eyes suddenly shone brightly, as if they were a dazzling second sun.

"Your strength..."

Zhang Xuan was stunned and was about to ask for clarification when he suddenly felt a sharp pain in his chest. Looking down, he saw that the Chengde Sword had already pierced through his chest.

Empyrean Kong shi stood quietly not far away, his gaze as cold as water.

...

Royal palace of the Tianli Empire.

Emperor Fusheng gently placed a chess piece, a faint smile appearing on his face.

"What's the matter?"

Seeing his expression, Wu Potian looked over.

"Hm!"

Emperor Fusheng nodded, "The piece I arranged earlier has played its part... you lost!"

Wu Potian was taken aback. He looked down at the chessboard and indeed found his white pieces surrounded with no escape as the new piece was placed.

"So this was your trump card... I really didn't expect it!"

Wu Potian shook his head and smiled slightly, "But... don't underestimate me. I have also hidden a move. I don't know if you've noticed it. If you haven't, I might still be able to turn the game around!"

...

Inside the Law Heavenly Capital.

"You..."

Feeling the pain in his chest, Zhang Xuan's pupils contracted. Paying no heed to his thoughts, he quickly leaped back.

"No traversing in this place!"

With a soft snort from Empyrean Kong shi, the space immediately solidified, like viscous mud.

The next moment, Zhang Xuan's retreating speed quickly decreased until it stopped.

He was supposed to leap over ten miles, but at this moment, he had retreated less than thirty meters. Such a distance, given their strength, was no different than being face-to-face.

"One word sealed space... Is this the Heavenly Destiny of Ceremony, fully inherited?"

The previously incomprehensible matter suddenly became clear.

In just over ten days of absence, Empyrean Kong shi was no longer the slightly reclusive young man of before. His strength had undergone a genuine transformation, even surpassing Zhang Xuan's current abilities.

"Was it you who killed and forged the Five Forms Venerable Sage?"

A thought emerged.

As for the Five Forms Venerable Sage, Zhang Xuan had only killed a single You Hai. The rest had also died and been attributed to Prince Yuanqing, who claimed Zhang Xuan did it.

At the time, he couldn't fathom why these people would think so. Upon witnessing Kong shi's cultivation at the moment, it suddenly made sense.

The five types of Destiny the Five Forms Venerable Sage comprehended all belonged to branches of the Heavenly Destiny of Ceremony. For Kong shi to advance rapidly, eliminating them, seizing their strength, and integrating it into himself was clearly the best choice.

Killing for power isn't unexpected, especially since the Five Forms Venerable Sage wasn't virtuous. If they weren't killed, they'd definitely kill Empyrean Kong shi. In this regard, Zhang Xuan felt little guilt. His shock stemmed from the fact that the Five Forms Venerable Sage was affiliated with the Crown Prince, and Kong shi, when captured, had a very low cultivation, only at Galaxy 7-dan, not even reaching Life Sea Realm. How did he then slay Life Sea 9-dan level figures like Shao Ming and Wan Yin?

Unsurprisingly, Kong shi should have allied with the Crown Prince, acquiring his support and thereby gaining such cultivation and power.

Risking life and limb to rescue someone, only to have them join forces with the enemy... and then stab you in the back!

Zhang Xuan felt a deep sorrow within, much greater than any physical injury.

From the time he entered the Master Teacher Continent, the other had been guiding his path, both friend and mentor, bestowing immense favor and treating him with a bond akin to rebirth. Hence, even knowing the dangers, knowing it was fatal, he still came, just for the sake of letting Empyrean Kong shi live on!

Yet never in his wildest dreams had he foreseen this outcome.

It's no wonder that over these past days, his messages were unanswered, with the sole response asking if he had arrived at the Law Heavenly Capital. All along, it wasn't that Empyrean Kong shi was captured and unable to reply, but rather that he had thrown his lot with the Crown Prince.

"Why?"

Allowing the Chengde Sword to stay embedded in his chest, Zhang Xuan stared intently at the familiar figure before him.

Disappointment, anger, sadness, sorrow, and other emotions clashed continuously within him, causing his chest to feel tight, forcing a mouthful of blood to spew out.

The sword's corrosion was nothing compared to the trauma within.

"Kong Shiming, well done!" With a hearty laugh, Prince Yuanqing descended.

At this time, the Bodhisattva of Wisdom Battle, Myriad Poison Demon Emperor, and others also approached, surrounding them and completely sealing the space.

"To achieve my destiny, attaching myself to the Empire and the Dynasty is the only choice I have... this is fate; I cannot escape it."

Empyrean Kong shi looked over coolly, his face devoid of any expression.

Zhang Xuan was silent.

Empyrean Kong shi's values of benevolence, righteousness, ceremony, wisdom, and trust, along with his loyalty to the emperor, could only be effectively promoted and spread through the Tianli Empire.

This meant... aligning with the Empire was his destiny.

"I understand now!"

Zhang Xuan pulled the Chengde Sword from his chest, tore off a scrap of cloth, and threw it across, his resonant voice echoing through the Law Heavenly Capital, "Empyrean Kong shi, with this, our past gratitude is severed. From this day forth, we are foes, not friends. The mountains and rivers are tall and long, each of us shall keep well."

ps:[The mountains and rivers are tall and long, each of us shall keep well]depicts the protagonist's break with Empyrean Kong shi. This is a part of destiny and signifies that even someone as strong as Empyrean Kong shi cannot defy destiny. The next volume, which is the penultimate one, is titled[This destiny isn't worth having]! Stay tuned.