My Fate Is Mine, Not Heaven's

From within the base of the metal contraption came the roar of high-speed gears and driving linkages. The entire machine vibrated violently, like an engine pushed past its power threshold. Immediately after, yellow electric arcs shot from both tips of the cast-brass crescent, crackling as they connected to the brass sphere. The brass sphere clicked and clattered as closely fitted metal cubes separated, shifting rapidly like a Rubik's Cube. Then it froze. A single metal cube locked into the center of the sphere, inscribed with a crooked bronze script character. It was the exact word Zhao Chenghuang had written by the pool earlier—Dog! The brass sphere blasted a dense, contorted arc of electricity, striking Little Red Riding Hood midair. Little Red Riding Hood immediately plummeted, crackling arcs of electricity dancing across the fabric. Yi Chuanmei tried to manipulate Little Red Riding Hood, but her telekinesis no longer functioned. "I cannot move objects." Yi Chuanmei dropped to her knees, raising her rear high, her voice laced with suppressed anticipation. "Yi Chuanmei has failed in her duty. Master, please lash me mercilessly! Do not hold back!" At this sight, Sun Miaomiao's and Zhao Chenghuang's expressions grew exceedingly strange. Sun Miaomiao in particular stared at Yuanshi Tianzun with a complicated look. She had never imagined he was that kind of person. *What kind of nonsense are you spewing in broad daylight? I shouldn't have let you out...* The corners of Zhang Yuanqing's mouth twitched. "I'll deal with you later." He opened his mouth and swallowed Yi Chuanmei back into his belly. "What happened to you two?" Guan Ya observed their expressions, picking up on the clues from the two Taiyi Sect Star Officials. Though she could sense spirits, she could not see them, nor could she hear a spirit servant speak. "Yi Chuanmei had a mental relapse and begged me to abuse her," Zhang Yuanqing confessed proactively, putting on a face of absolute righteousness. "Am I that sort of person? I am a paragon of virtue, known throughout the Jianghu as the Little Demonic Eye. I flatly refused." World Returns to Fire said in a heavy voice, "Enough of these pointless remarks. What do we do next?" Guan Ya did not dwell on the matter and said, "The attack was indeed launched by a mechanical weapon. Barring any surprises, the yin corpses inside Little Red Riding Hood have already been struck. But without retrieving the item, we can't tell what kind of attack they suffered." Just as she finished, Xiao Yuan picked up the thread. "At least it wasn't decapitation, which means one type of attack hasn't been triggered yet. There might be two distinct dangers in this cavern." The two women were still subtly competing with each other. *All my yin corpses are in that hat. Please don't let anything happen to them...* Zhang Yuanqing worried silently, turning his gaze toward Xiahou Aotian. "At a time like this, we need our protagonist to strategize." Xiahou Aotian instantly raised his chin with pride, pretending to contemplate. "Let me think. Allow me to think." In his mind, he reached out to the old grandpa in his ring: *Master, what is this thing?* *I don't know,* the Qin dynasty fangshi replied lazily. *How could you not know?* Xiahou Aotian thought with deep skepticism. *You're an antique from the Qin dynasty too, and a fangshi at that. You must have crossed paths with the Mohists... Are you jealous of this protagonist's overflowing talent and dashing charm, trying to get me killed?* The Qin dynasty fangshi sighed. *Every time I hear you speak, I want to jump out of the ring and beat you. What good would your death do me? I have no desire to remain trapped in the Spirit Realm. If I don't know, I don't know. I forgot.* *Forgot? How could that be?* *I simply forgot. Do you remember things from before you were ten?* *No...* *Then what right do you have to demand that I remember things from several thousand years ago?* Xiahou Aotian was left speechless—not because he lacked an argument, but because he realized an issue with the old grandpa in the ring: his memories were incomplete. An eidetic memory was the most basic ability of a Scholar. How could he possibly forget? Thus, something had to be wrong with the Qin fangshi's soul. It likely involved the old man's privacy, so he chose to remain silent. "Even as the protagonist, I am not omnipotent," Xiahou Aotian lamented aloud. Having grown familiar with him, the group immediately understood his true meaning: *I don't know either!* *Huh, even an old antique from the Qin dynasty doesn't know?* Zhang Yuanqing frowned. After pondering for a long while, he said, "Then our only choice is to test boldly and defend with caution. I'll lead the way; you follow behind. Asano Ryo, Zhao Chenghuang, the two of you keep watch for dangers above. I'll handle the attacks from the machine. "Everyone else, adapt as necessary." Asano Ryo was a Water Ghost who could physically endure direct strikes, while Zhao Chenghuang's bronze soldiers were cannon fodder that could be repaired repeatedly. The two of them were best suited to handle threats from the ceiling. With Zhang Yuanqing at the head, the team advanced toward the metal machine in an orderly, cautious formation. To reach the exit on the far side of the cavern, there was no avoiding the mechanical contraption in the center. *Hum...* As the group drew near the machine, the grinding clash of high-speed gears and linkages erupted from its base once more. Without panicking, Zhang Yuanqing brought out the Purple-Gold Shield, aiming its face toward the machine, and barked a warning: "Look sharp!" The previous scene played out again. Yellow electric arcs leaped from both tips of the crescent to bridge with the floating brass sphere. The tight metal cubes loosened and spun like a Rubik's Cube. Under everyone's tense, solemn gaze, the cube in the center of the sphere shifted from "Dog" to an unfamiliar character. "It's Pig!" Xiahou Aotian called out loudly. The moment the words left his mouth, a dense storm of electric arcs erupted from the brass sphere, hurtling toward the group. Zhang Yuanqing stepped forward without hesitation, raising the shield to intercept every incoming arc. *Crackle! Snap!* Under the assault, the Purple-Gold Shield bounced back with purple-gold electric arcs of its own, the two differing colors clashing in brilliant radiance. The exchange lasted for a dozen seconds before finally subsiding. Zhang Yuanqing shook his numb arm, turned back to his companions, and asked in bewilderment, "That's it?" Guan Ya and the others were equally taken aback, though their surprise leaned toward relief. Xiao Yuan came to a sudden realization. "It seems the true killing blow is above us." Guan Ya gave a cold snort, but bowing to reality, she looked up toward the cavern ceiling and said heavily, "Keep watch overhead. Protect your backs and heads." The group skirted around the metal machine and continued forward. After a few paces, Zhang Yuanqing shook his aching arm and remarked, "My arm feels a bit sore." "Are you all right?" Brother Red Chicken asked beside him. "I'm fine, probably just numb from the shock..." Zhang Yuanqing glanced at the Fire Specialist beside him and grumbled, "Why did you run up next to me? Why are you moving so fast? We agreed to keep formation." Brother Red Chicken replied irritably, "You're the one who's too slow! We're all walking on four legs, but you're carrying a shield and walking on three. Of course I overtook you in a flash." Zhang Yuanqing froze. "What four legs?" He turned his head to look back. His teammates were trotting along, heads raised to watch the ceiling, wiggling their hindquarters as their curled short tails wagged merrily behind them. *Oh, right. Everyone's walking on four legs. I'm the slow one.* Zhang Yuanqing turned forward again, hurrying his three legs along to lead the group toward the exit. Wait! He abruptly braked with all three legs, realizing something was horribly wrong. Zhang Yuanqing's expression twisted in horror, and he yelled, "What's going on?! Why have you all turned into pigs?!" The figures trailing behind him were not humans at all. They were a sounder of plump white pigs with fan-like ears and elongated backs! Looking down, he saw his own short forelegs and trotters. His right trotter was hooked through the shield's metal grip. It was precisely because one trotter was holding the shield that he had been walking on three legs. Furthermore, in the corner of his vision, he caught sight of his own elongated snout. He had turned into a pig too. "What do you mean we turned into pigs?" Sun Miaomiao snapped in annoyance. "We've always been pigs! Stop spouting nonsense and walk faster." With that, she trotted forward a few steps and rammed Zhang Yuanqing's rump in a full sow charge. Zhang Yuanqing stumbled from the shove, but his heart plummeted straight to rock bottom. *We've always been pigs?* *When the hell did we become pigs?!* In a panic, he moved to block everyone—no, every pig. "World Returns to Fire, are you human or pig?!" he shouted. World Returns to Fire calmly replied, "If I recall correctly, humans walk on two legs. What do you think?" Brother Red Chicken trotted anxiously in circles around the group, his pig tail wagging cheerfully. "I'm so hungry. Why hasn't anyone come to feed us yet? I want fine bran, fresh fine bran..." *He turned into a pig and he's still dreaming about eating fresh bran?!* Terror mounting, Zhang Yuanqing nudged Guan Ya hard with his snout. "Sister Guan Ya, are you human or a pig?!" Guan Ya let out two snorts. "I'm not some vile, shameless creature like a human! Don't talk to me. Go find your old sow." Xiao Yuan said coldly, "What's wrong with old sows? Your man loves old sows—he told me so himself." Cold sweat broke out across Zhang Yuanqing's skin—not because of the crack about old sows, but because the situation was utterly bizarre and grotesque. It was as though they had fallen under a transformation curse straight out of a fairy tale, turning from humans into pigs. What was terrifying was that everyone's reasoning remained perfectly sharp, yet not a single one realized anything was wrong. Each and every one of them firmly believed they were a pig. "Zhao Chenghuang, are you a human?!" Zhang Yuanqing cried. Zhao Chenghuang replied coldly, "For no reason at all, why are you insulting pigs?" "..." Zhang Yuanqing spun frantically in place, rooting around in frustration. Commandery Princess Yinyao hastily sat back on her haunches, clutching a small loudspeaker in her pig jaws, and warned, "Everyone be careful! Protect yourselves! Yuanshi Tianzun has gone mad!" *Why the hell are you sitting down? What are you trying to protect?!* Zhang Yuanqing was furious. World Returns to Fire offered a calm analysis: "Don't worry, Yuanshi Tianzun shouldn't be in heat just yet." Zhang Yuanqing squealed in sheer rage. *Huh, you actually managed to retain your human awareness?* A voice sounded directly in Zhang Yuanqing's mind. Zhang Yuanqing jolted, tracing the voice to a dashing white pig—Xiahou Aotian. Fitted around that white pig's trotter was a dark iron ring. *You are...* Zhang Yuanqing asked using the Night Roamer method of communication. *We met before, in the First Emperor's underground palace.* The voice sounded ancient and grave. *Now is not the time to reminisce. Your situation is dire; everyone's cognition has been altered.* *Yes, they think they're pigs!* Zhang Yuanqing said frantically. *What do we do? Senior, think of something!* *It seems you've been affected too, having grown somewhat dull-witted,* the Qin dynasty fangshi sighed. *I cannot help you, but I have a rough idea of what happened.* *What happened?* Zhang Yuanqing pressed instinctively. He truly had grown dimmer, acting just like a Fire Specialist—asking questions the second he didn't understand, abandoning all thought. *This is a powerful curse, one capable of transfiguring humans into animals. The Mohist Sect integrated occult curses into their mechanics. Those struck by it suffer cognitive distortion, firmly believing themselves to be pigs,* the Qin dynasty fangshi explained. *Even if you tell them a hundred times that they are human, none will believe you. I already tried with this one. The foolish boy actually told me that how could a stupid animal like a human ever compare to a pig? A pig's head is the smartest head in the world, and he is the cleverest among pigs.* The old fangshi sighed. *Fortunately, this curse has a time limit. It won't last long.* Zhang Yuanqing breathed a sigh of relief. *That's good, that's good...* *Good?* The Qin dynasty fangshi gave a dry chuckle. *In a perilous place like this, what is good about turning into a pig? Try opening your inventory. See if you can use your skills.* Zhang Yuanqing tried, and his pig face instantly blanched. "I... I can't open it..." *Can you execute your skills?* "My skills are gone too..." Panic flared violently in Zhang Yuanqing's heart. Turning into a pig inside an instance and losing his skills was practically a death sentence. Beyond that, he felt a strange sense of familiarity, as if he had suffered a similar hardship before. But his pig brain couldn't recall it. *The restriction likely stems from 'Against Music,' but the true core of this trial is 'Against Fate.' Do you remember what Against Fate means?* the Qin dynasty fangshi asked. *My fate is mine, not Heaven's. Only by defying fate can one rebel against it. Only by refusing to believe you are a pig can you resist the fate of being slaughtered. This is the Mohist Sect's test.* *I have forgotten many things, which is why I could not warn you in advance.* *That you could retain your sense of self proves you do not believe in fate. You are the most extreme, the most rebellious member of this team. Tsk, tsk... born defiant with rebellion in your bones. Turns out that wasn't just an empty boast; you truly meant it.* Just as his words faded, the whir of spinning gears echoed from above. In the next second, a mechanical puppet clutching a steel blade dropped through a vent directly above Brother Red Chicken. A flash of cold steel cleaved straight toward Brother Red Chicken's head. Horrified, Zhang Yuanqing galloped forward on three trotters, slamming violently into the puppet from the side. *Bang!* The puppet's blade was knocked off course, its keen edge slicing across Brother Red Chicken's back instead. Like a red-hot knife carving through cheese, the flesh split open in an instant, and his spine was severed in a single stroke. Blood erupted like a fountain. Brother Red Chicken collapsed to the ground, his four trotters twitching violently as he let out a dying shriek.