Chapter 1355: Fate United in Destiny

Gods and immortals are fundamentally different.

Xu Qing looked at Prince Ziqing, speaking calmly.

But the moment one abandons the path of the thick earth and chooses to ascend, they become… essentially the same.

Thus, in the celestial ring of ascension, gods and immortals may appear vastly different, but in truth share the same origin.

Therefore… I will die, and so will you.

But compared to death, I actually wish to see, at this level, whether your fate is deeper or my will is more infinite!

As the voice still echoed, Xu Qing's body took a step downward, crossing a hundred zhang, rushing straight toward Prince Ziqing outside the great hall.

Outside the great hall, Prince Ziqing's gaze fell upon Xu Qing's approaching figure, his expression cold, silent.

Meanwhile, inside the great hall, Prince Ziqing remained gentle, speaking softly, his voice passing through the main trunk of fate, echoing in the outer hall of the tributary fates.

"Younger brother, what you think is also what I think."

"Fate… superimposed!"

At the instant the words were spoken, the expressionless Prince Ziqing outside the great hall raised his right hand, pressing lightly toward the swiftly approaching Xu Qing.

With that press, the power of fate descended silently and invisibly, forming something ineffable, falling around Xu Qing and transforming into layer upon layer of ripples.

And within those ripples, scenes were formed.

In those scenes, reflections of Xu Qing's figures appeared—this was not a parallel created by spacetime law, but… streams of fate split from Xu Qing's main trunk of fate.

It can also be said that these are the countless possibilities arising in the natural decline of life!

Each possibility, at this moment, forms a scene.

"Time, in truth, does not exist—it is merely a concept created by sentient beings to calculate their own decay and that of all things."

"Therefore, your spacetime is flawed."

"And I do not measure by spacetime."

The Prince Ziqing inside the great hall spoke softly.

His voice fell outside, rippling the scenes.

And within the scenes, everything was filled with contradiction—for instance, in some scenes Xu Qing was slaughtering others, while in others, at the exact same fate node, he was seated in meditation.

Some scenes showed his death within a certain fate, while others showed him gaining fortune and opportunity under the same fate.

Still others depicted the dispersal of kin, while others showed warm companionship.

This is a superimposition of fate!

Causing Xu Qing to simultaneously harbor multiple mutually exclusive fates at this moment.

These fates intertwined, manifesting around Xu Qing as fragmentary forms.

His true body within these fragments became blurred, as if about to be erased, and each step forward caused countless transparent afterimages to split outward in all directions.

These afterimages, in turn, became new possibilities of fate.

Boundless and endless.

It was as if he were simultaneously experiencing countless lives.

In this state, every action of Xu Qing's, even each heartbeat, would trigger a storm of probability, making fate extremely unstable, as if it could be switched at any moment.

Impossible to control!

This is the main fate being blended by branch fates.

This is the true self being usurped by the other self.

Yet only his voice, in this blending and usurpation, remained calmly echoing.

"I have experienced a similar scene before."

"And my cultivation is not merely of time or space; the principle I have comprehended is…"

"Unity!"

"Time unites, space unites, spacetime unites, parallel unites, fate… also unites!"

At the instant Xu Qing's voice rang out, his increasingly illusory form raised his right hand.

The intent of his principle suddenly erupted, spreading from his raised hand, forming a line of unity, piercing fiercely outward in all directions.

Piercing through all fate fragments, binding them all together at that moment…

Xu Qing's right hand clenched fiercely.

All fate fragments around him, at that moment, roared, their scenes forcibly altered, all becoming him at this very moment!

Then, these scenes converged toward Xu Qing, rapidly overlapping with his form.

Because the Xu Qing in those scenes was identical to him at this very moment, this overlap produced no afterimage after superposition, but rather resembled fusion.

Causing Xu Qing's originally blurred form to become, as if repeatedly outlined, more substantial.

Until finally, when all scenes had vanished at that instant, the Xu Qing standing there was exceptionally real, exceptionally clear!

Subsequently, the voice echoed back.

"Descend!"

As soon as this voice sounded, everything around him changed at breakneck speed!

Accompanied by the roar of heaven and earth, the sound shaking the skies, where Xu Qing stood, a layer of ink wash appeared.

This ink wash, centered on Xu Qing, swept up his principle, spreading suddenly in all directions.

Rendering everything!

Wherever it passed, whether the palace or the capital, even the entire Swallow-Heaven Dominion, in that instant, rapidly deteriorated alongside Xu Qing's clarity!

The concept of height was abstracted, three-dimensional existence flattened, everything, everything, in the blink of an eye, became an ink wash painting.

This is… dimensional descent!

It also included that palace great hall, and the coldly expressionless Crown Prince Ziqing outside the great hall.

They became part of the picture!

Only Xu Qing was the sole color in the world, standing on this ink painting!

His right foot lifted, as if replacing the heavens, he took a step toward the palace hall in the ink painting.

This was another manifestation of Xu Qing's own constitution.

And at the moment his lifted foot descended, the Crown Prince Ziqing, standing before the hall within the ink painting, raised his head, gazing at the black shadow that seemed to have replaced the heavens within this world.

He spoke coldly.

"In the City of No Peer, your first death, your lifespan was seven!"

As these words were spoken, the Crown Prince Ziqing's left eye revealed the image of Xu Qing as a child in the City of No Peer from that time.

That image instantly shattered, turning into seven silver threads, tangible and manifest.

Each thread represented one year of age.

"In the Seven Blood Pupils, you have undergone many fortunes, your opportunities were five!"

As the second sentence echoed, the Crown Prince Ziqing's right eye reflected scenes of Xu Qing in the Seven Blood Pupils, and then five golden butterflies flew out from within.

Each butterfly represented one opportunity!

"By the Empress altering fate, your second death, your tribulations were two!"

At the moment this third sentence was transmitted, the scene condensed in the void before the Crown Prince Ziqing, showing exactly the scene of Xu Qing's death in the human imperial capital back then.

At the moment of death within it, two black chains flew out from within!

"Today, weaving your lifespan into silver threads, shaping your opportunities into golden butterflies, forging your tribulations into death iron chains, transforming your fate's butterfly..."

The picture intertwined, gold, silver, and black rapidly merged, forming a three-colored butterfly!

As this butterfly emerged, the entire ink painting rippled, as if the scroll had wrinkled!

And as the three-colored butterfly spread its wings, colors immediately radiated from it as a center, spreading across the entire ink painting!

Making the ink painting no longer monotonous, making it seem to have gained vitality!

Then, this butterfly suddenly surged, rushing straight toward the heavens!

Wherever it passed, the picture melted, it flew higher and higher, finally breaking through the world of this ink painting!

Charging outward.

The moment it appeared outside the painting, the entire ink painting began to shatter.

And that three-colored butterfly, in a flash, split into countless numbers, covering the sky and earth, all rushing toward Xu Qing!

Each one, in Xu Qing's perception, was actually deeply connected to himself, as if... each one was himself!

At the same time, as the ink painting collapsed, the voice of the Crown Prince Ziqing echoed within the hall.

"With your fate's butterfly, become your fate's cage!"

"Imprison!"