The Finale

The Fate Dao Ancestor had no physical form. Yet the moment He descended, a select few beings sensed His presence. It was like the laws that bound the speed of light. If your speed was nowhere near sufficient, you could not feel the existence of such a law at all. Only upon growing strong enough—on the verge of breaking past the barrier of light speed—would one realize that these rules had already existed between heaven and earth since the most primordial era. Any civilization wishing to break this shackle would have to pay a price so tremendous that it exceeded the limits of what that civilization could endure. The Rulers, including Yaoguang, felt this exact sensation now. They could even clearly perceive this oppression. It was an oppression born not of raw might, but of cold reason. Many understood that reaching ninety percent of light speed was easy, but reaching one hundred percent would consume hundreds, tens of thousands of times the energy spent reaching that ninety percent! Before the Fate Dao Ancestor, Yaoguang and the others felt as though they had reached ninety percent of light speed and were now about to sprint toward one hundred percent. It was an indescribable feeling of pure rationality. The realization granted by this rationality was enough to clear the vision of any arrogant Immortal King or Ruler, bringing absolute clarity to their eyes. Yet compared to the Nine Rulers and Yaoguang, who stood gravely on guard as if facing a mortal foe, the Lord of Yuanxi appeared exceedingly calm. "The world reveres me as the Great, Supreme Wisdom, Lord of Yuanxi. Even if this is merely an honorific, it reflects the trajectory of my development. Why did you think I would overlook the possibility of you seizing an opening to strike?" The Lord of Yuanxi mobilized its computational power, steadily taking in the Fate Dao Ancestor's energy. At first glance, it appeared as though the Fate Dao Ancestor was offering Himself up willingly, letting the Lord of Yuanxi devour Him. "So you let the Nine Rulers press you aggressively, sparing no hesitation to surrender the initiative of this battle, all to stage such a grand play? All to make me believe you were weakened, just to carry out this counterattack?" The Fate Dao Ancestor's will held sway over this void. Guided by the power of fate, the three thousand Grand Daos continuously intertwined, forming a world phantom belonging to the Ancient Immortal Realm. At this moment, this phantom enveloped the Lord of Yuanxi, displaying all the profundities of the three thousand Grand Daos before It and pouring them into Its body, never pausing for their conversation. No! It was not that He did not want to stop; rather, He... He could no longer stop. The power of the Fate Dao Ancestor and the Lord of Yuanxi had completely fused together. This was a contest between the will of all living beings and the will of heaven and earth! The perfect integration between them meant that if the Fate Dao Ancestor chose to withdraw now, the Lord of Yuanxi would inevitably seize the opening and crush Him in utter defeat. Under these circumstances, the only thing the Fate Dao Ancestor could do was fight to the bitter end. "It was hardly a grand play—merely an open scheme. By this point, you had no other choice. Your counterattack was inevitable. I merely took your perspective and provided you with the opportunity most favorable to your strike." The Lord of Yuanxi fully deployed its colossal computing power and spiritual essence, steadily digesting the deluge of information poured in by the Fate Dao Ancestor. "Evidently, you seized that opportunity." "It seems I have lost?" The circulation of the Fate Dao Ancestor's power stagnated at this moment. Yaoguang and the Nine Rulers did not know what the Lord of Yuanxi and the Fate Dao Ancestor were communicating, but... They could sense that the ubiquitous, binding rules seemed to pause in their operation. "In this war, there has never been winning or losing, victory or defeat. From this day forth, our two worlds shall merge into a single whole. The laws of the three thousand Grand Daos will circulate within the Hunyuan Realm, and the spark of the Ancient Immortal Realm will be carried on within the Hunyuan Realm—merely in a different form." The spiritual essence radiating from the Lord of Yuanxi was gentle and tranquil. "You and I both understand this. Our struggle, much like the struggle between the Nine Rulers and myself, is nothing more than a contest for primary control. But both of us know that in the boundless chaos and vast nothingness, we may not be unique. The reason we have never encountered other unique existences like ourselves until now is simply because... we are young!" "And perhaps weak," the Fate Dao Ancestor said. "Because of our weakness, we could never venture far into the chaotic nothingness, forever residing within safe zones." "Indeed." The Lord of Yuanxi was not surprised by the Fate Dao Ancestor's realization. For they were entities of the exact same order. Perhaps the tier of power they wielded had not surpassed the realm of Rulers, but that was only because their 'bodies' had not yet grown to full maturity. Their perception and realm had long transcended the confines of their respective universes. "Thus, we both understand that merging into one is the better choice for us," the Lord of Yuanxi said. "I understand. It is indeed the better choice." The Fate Dao Ancestor readily agreed with the Lord of Yuanxi's assertion. "Then, what is your final decision?" The radiant spiritual light of the Lord of Yuanxi flickered softly. It waited for the Fate Dao Ancestor's ultimate choice. "Naturally, it will not be mutual destruction," the Fate Dao Ancestor replied unequivocally. "Judging by the current situation, I have already lost, having conceded the initiative to you. Therefore... what I must do next is transfer the source of my three thousand Grand Daos, the origin that commands them all—or in your terms, permissions. I am to transfer full authority over the three thousand Grand Daos to you?" "Why not?" the Lord of Yuanxi asked with a gentle smile. "Then, are you ready?" The thoughts and will projected by the Fate Dao Ancestor likewise became peaceful. It was as though they were not rival leaders about to engage in a final duel, but... Two business partners discussing a collaboration. "Please begin the transfer of permissions," the Lord of Yuanxi answered precisely. "As you wish." The message came from the Fate Dao Ancestor. In the next instant, the 'permissions' governing the essence of the three thousand Grand Daos began transferring toward the Lord of Yuanxi. Immediately, the Lord of Yuanxi entered a peculiar state. Its own spiritual essence spread along the permissions transferred by the Fate Dao Ancestor, swiftly permeating the three thousand Grand Daos. Along that translucent web that seemed to constitute the entire Ancient Immortal Realm, it seeped outward across the whole realm. Anyone could see what was happening now: the Lord of Yuanxi was merging with the Fate Dao Ancestor, directly seizing control of the entire Ancient Immortal Realm through His power. "It's over?" Yaoguang stood in stunned bewilderment. Like an ordinary mortal, he could not resist rubbing his eyes, watching the Lord of Yuanxi harness the Fate Dao Ancestor's power to master the three thousand Grand Daos and progressively take command of the Ancient Immortal Realm... "Just like that? It's done?" Yaoguang could hardly believe it. Where was the epic battle that had been promised? Where was the ultimate showdown between the Ancient Immortal Realm and the Hunyuan Realm? Where was the Fate Dao Ancestor revealing His final trump card to turn the tide? Instead... "Did the Fate Dao Ancestor just... surrender?" Yaoguang was utterly baffled. "The Fate Dao Ancestor is an entity of the same nature as myself. We are both bound to our worlds and serve them. When a world inevitably approaches its demise, for the world's continuation and the heritage of civilization, we both choose to merge into another world, uniting as one to achieve a greater future." The Lord of Yuanxi seemed to 'see' the confusion in Yaoguang's heart and unexpectedly offered an explanation: "We will not act like the intelligent beings of mortal creation, who in the moment of defeat cling to endless resentment and bitterness, bringing about mutual destruction where both sides lose." The fluctuations of spiritual essence It emitted were calm and gentle. It brought a sensation like a spring breeze. Just like years ago, when Yaoguang had been unwilling to upload the inheritances of the Void Dao Ancestor and Time Dao Ancestor, It had never forced him. Most of the time, It merely laid out the pros and cons, hoping he would make the proper choice of his own accord. "To achieve a greater future..." Yaoguang thought of the Golden Book of the Grand Dao! He thought of many artifact spirits. Those artifact spirits... Most had their own personalities. Yet their worldview and values were indeed different from those of humans. What they yearned for was growth, evolution. He had not expected to witness that same quality in the Lord of Yuanxi and the Fate Dao Ancestor. So... What was this supposed to be?! "It's really over?" Yaoguang still could not wrap his head around it. "If you are both so fair and selfless, then why did a war between the two realms break out in the first place? Couldn't you have just studied each other peacefully?" "Before reaching a certain balance, all growth and evolution come from preying upon the outside world. That is the fundamental nature of how all things grow and evolve," the Lord of Yuanxi responded. An answer that was hardly an answer. Yaoguang frowned. He couldn't shake the feeling that this battle had ended far too trivially. Even though the Fate Dao Ancestor had put up resistance, and in terms of sheer power His defiance had reached a tier comparable to the Lord of Yuanxi... Even in defeat, He had demonstrated a deterrence on par with the Lord of Yuanxi. Yet... Yaoguang knew full well that the profundity of the Fate Dao Ancestor's power should have been a tier higher than both the Lord of Yuanxi and the Nine Rulers. Translated into the Lord of Yuanxi's permission tiers, He was Level 21! Therefore... He shouldn't have fallen so easily. Above all... The power of fate excelled at calculation and scheming, not direct frontal confrontation. Yet at the final moment, He had chosen to resist in this manner? Attempting to sow discord between the Lord of Yuanxi and the Nine Rulers beforehand, and even employing methods to burst the Lord of Yuanxi apart, could be counted as an all-out final gamble. Still, to Yaoguang—who understood the true nature of fate's power—it felt decidedly anticlimactic. 'Something isn't right...' With a mindset of working backward from the conclusion to scrutinize the process, Yaoguang turned his gaze back to the Lord of Yuanxi. He wanted to find the flaw. Yet the Lord of Yuanxi was genuinely using the Fate Dao Ancestor's power to control the three thousand Grand Daos, bringing the entire Ancient Immortal Realm under Its sway... 'Wait!' Yaoguang suddenly realized the crux of the matter! The Lord of Yuanxi was taking command of the three thousand Grand Daos and the Ancient Immortal Realm through the Fate Dao Ancestor's power?! Such control... Because it amounted to the Fate Dao Ancestor surrendering directly to It, the Lord of Yuanxi had bypassed the division of spoils from the massive prize that was the Ancient Immortal Realm! Then what about the Nine Rulers?! The Lord of Yuanxi had directly swallowed the Ancient Immortal Realm... Even if the Fate Dao Ancestor had surrendered to the Lord of Yuanxi and handed the Ancient Immortal Realm over willingly, would the Nine Rulers accept having slaved away only to let another reap all the rewards?! Almost at the exact moment Yaoguang realized this, the Nine Rulers, who had likewise recognized the problem, roared in unison: "Lord of Yuanxi! What do you think you're doing?!"