Fulfillment

Wei Yuan was the first to strike, defying everyone's expectations. Even in the eyes of Scenery Command cultivators, the heavenly tribulation of ascending from Dharma Idol to Scenery Command was terrifying. Moreover, Wei Yuan was actively intervening in the tribulation, which would inevitably draw the wrath of heaven and earth and invite an appalling heavenly tribulation upon himself. Sword qi surged like a roaring river, slashing directly into the Heavenly Pillar and instantly gouging a deep fissure across it. Countless streams of black fluid spewed from the rift, swelling as they met the wind and transforming into misshapen, lifeless abominations. At that moment, a finger reached down from beyond the heavens, while a jade sword and a spark of destiny light tore through the void, each striking the Heavenly Pillar. The Heavenly Pillar instantly shattered into pieces, and a torrent of black water plunged downward, submerging the Heaven Sacrificial Altar! A shrill shriek rang out in the depths of everyone's soul, shaking them to their core. A few cultivators with gaping flaws in their Dao hearts suffered immediate inner demon backlash, collapsing dead on the spot. Many others lacking sufficient cultivation had their souls torn straight from their bodies. In an instant, half of the onlookers collapsed, and the entire Heaven Sacrificial Altar was suddenly filled with drifting wraiths. Drawn by some unseen pull, countless wraiths converged toward the King of Zhao submerged beneath the black water. At this moment, Wei Yuan's Yellow Springs Grotto-Heaven stirred, naturally seeking to seize the wandering souls. But right then, a lotus seed descended from beyond the heavens, mingling among the wraiths and drifting toward the black water as well. The moment the lotus seed appeared, the entire Yellow Springs Grotto-Heaven shook. Another symbol on the Gate of the Many Realms faintly glowed, showing signs of lighting up! By sheer instinct, Wei Yuan knew he had to obtain this lotus seed at all costs! Yet something stirred within Wei Yuan's heart; he vaguely sensed that something was amiss. High in the Immortal Heaven, Immortal Ancestor Zhao Li's face paled in a rare display of alarm. He seemed about to rise, yet froze midair, unable to move an inch. A look of comprehension flickered in his eyes; in an instant, he understood the causes and effects and saw where the supreme beings had placed their pieces. All he could do was sigh softly, knowing that nothing could reverse the tide. One could only say that the plots of supreme beings were laid across vast expanses, and only now was a corner of the curtain pulled back. At this juncture, the world seemed frozen in time, with Wei Yuan alone able to move freely. He appeared in the Pure Land of Ultimate Bliss and instinctively stepped into the small temple. The lotus seat within was still empty, seven sticks of incense stood in the burner, and on the altar table lay the Three Realms Ruyi Scripture, its opening lines barely written. Wei Yuan had already sensed the shift around him. He understood that the world had not truly frozen; rather, he had entered an esoteric, transcendent state—likely a manifestation of the King Buddha's supreme supernatural power to enlighten him. In the past, the King Buddha had rarely intervened directly. This showed that the most critical juncture had arrived: the scheming match between the supreme beings beyond the heavens had reached the point where the dagger was revealed, and the King Buddha had directly stepped in to sway Wei Yuan, the most pivotal chess piece. Everything came at a price. At such a critical moment, Wei Yuan naturally would not hesitate. A stick of pure incense appeared in his hand, and he placed it into the incense burner; it ignited of its own accord. As the incense flared to life, Wei Yuan felt his body grow slightly heavier, knowing that much more karmic burden had settled upon him. Through the curling blue smoke, Wei Yuan's vision extended endlessly, piercing straight through the black water that submerged the Heaven Sacrificial Altar. In the center of the dark flood, the King of Zhao was covered in bizarre, abstract monsters of all sizes, which were relentlessly gnawing at his body. And those deceased souls were precisely the bane of these creatures. What even Immortal Ancestor Zhao Li had failed to foresee was that Wei Yuan possessed the Yellow Springs Grotto-Heaven, capable of collecting departed souls. Furthermore, the lotus seed floating among the spirits could allow Wei Yuan to directly establish a spirit mansion and manifest his true spirit, saving him boundless effort. On the path of immortal cultivation, saving even a few years could mean the difference between life and death; Xu Wangu was a living testament to that. This was an open scheme: Wei Yuan was forced to choose between the King of Zhao's survival and his own Daoist path. Any normal cultivator would know what choice to make. What was more, there was little personal affection between the King of Zhao and Wei Yuan; the two kittens were still mere decorative ornaments. Even those two kittens had been given to Wei Yuan by Immortal Ancestor Zhao Li, having nothing to do with the King of Zhao himself. Thus, once the supreme beings revealed their hidden move, Immortal Ancestor Zhao Li knew the King of Zhao was finished. Once Li Shenji died, this game of chess would become convoluted and obscure once more. All of Immortal Ancestor Zhao Li's subsequent plans would fall through, and numerous factions watching from the shadows would be forced to redraw their layouts. Immortal Ancestor Zhao Li felt a profound sense of loss. Looking at Li Shenji in the depths of the black water, an ache welled from the depths of his bloodline. Li Shenji had once possessed glorious prospects on the immortal path. But back then, to counter a formidable enemy, Immortal Ancestor Zhao Li had used the young Li Shenji as bait to draw out a deadly hidden trap from his opponent. Taking advantage of the blow, the move had propelled Li Shenji onto the throne, forever ruining his immortal path. That had been the price of Immortal Ancestor Zhao Li's tribulation evasion. Over the years, the King of Zhao had governed with diligence and ambition, and the Immortal Ancestor had seen it all. Yet he also knew that this child had never wanted to be King of Zhao—not for a single day. Even Wei Boyang, a childhood companion of mediocre aptitude, had reached the Sky Command Realm. To say Li Shenji harbored no envy in his heart was utterly impossible. At this very moment, the pain in Immortal Ancestor Zhao Li's heart had nothing to do with the gains or losses of the immortal path; it was purely heartache. Having suffered repeated heavy strikes, the Heavenly Pillar left the monsters in the black water with barely any vitality remaining. Even so, they gnawed the King of Zhao's dharma physique until it was riddled with wounds. Had their vitality been fully intact, they would have devoured him completely in the blink of an eye. Yet the King of Zhao remained seated upright, resisting with all his might. Even through the agony of ten thousand insects gnawing his flesh, he did not entertain the slightest thought of surrender. The Daoist seeker's resolve to contend desperately for the faintest sliver of hope, never once looking back, was displayed to the fullest at this moment. Seeing all this, Wei Yuan understood the King Buddha's guidance. The King Buddha had pierced through layers of fog with supreme supernatural power, letting Wei Yuan see the grand design of the supreme beings behind the scenes, yet had placed the choice entirely in Wei Yuan's hands without any further prompting or intervention. How to act depended solely on Wei Yuan's true heart. The choice facing Wei Yuan now was whether to let the inconsequential King of Zhao live, or to advance his own path a step further, straight to the spirit mansion. In an instant, Wei Yuan's Dao heart became luminous and clear. Wei Yuan gave a soft chuckle and muttered to himself, "A man like me cares most about face. A promise made must naturally be kept." The world returned to normal. Wei Yuan withdrew from that esoteric state and simply suppressed the disturbance within the Yellow Springs Grotto-Heaven. Deprived of their target, the myriad souls were once again drawn to the King of Zhao, plunging into the black water. The lotus seed also fell into the depths, drifting toward the King of Zhao. Immortal Ancestor Zhao Li sprang to his feet, utterly incredulous. This twist came so abruptly that he even lost his composure. The moment the wraiths entered the black water, they began to burn. In an instant, the black water churned, throwing up vast billows of steam like a boiling cauldron. The bizarre creatures in the dark water were melted away by the ghostly flames, sinking to the bottom like sheets of hot wax. Countless wraiths plunged toward the King of Zhao like moths to a flame. In the blink of an eye, the bizarre creatures gnawing at his body caught fire as well, dropping off one by one. Moving alongside the wraiths, the mysterious lotus seed drifted until it reached the King of Zhao, sinking into the space between his brows. Only now did an obscure ripple of thought emanate from beyond the heavens, seemingly astonishment—astonishment that Wei Yuan had actually given up the lotus seed, choosing instead to fulfill the King of Zhao. Fresh from the blessing of the King Buddha's divine power, Wei Yuan remained in a state of lucid clarity, catching that fleeting ripple of thought. With his hands clasped behind his back, Wei Yuan adjusted his posture and composure to their absolute peak, showing not a single vulnerability, before speaking in a deep voice: "My Daoist path is mine alone to walk. I have no need for another's aid." Pausing briefly, Wei Yuan added, "And the likes of you—could never help me anyway."