Chapter 71: Chapter Seventy-One: A Family of Filial Piety and Fraternal Love

「……」

Jin Xia was stunned by these words; after a long while, she came to her senses, her face filled with sincere admiration.

“Daojun, the tone you just used sounded like some street beggar boss.”

He solemnly raised his thumb: “It got my blood boiling—I almost wanted to grab a stick and join you in collecting alms on the streets.”

“But.”

Jin Xia glanced sideways at the figure in the hall—the Chen Hang the Daojun had projected with great magical power—and shrugged:

“What kind of good fortune is it to bet on this man? I simply can’t see anything remarkable about him. Not even Wei Lingjiang or Wang Shen of the sect can be compared to him—let alone that grotesque Sima Fang, who clearly surpasses this Chen Hang by far.”

“Unless you’re trying to curry favor with him because of his lineage? As for his grandfather, I know you had past troubles with that Divine King.”

Jin Xia squatted down casually, snatched a fist-sized immortal apricot from the jade tray, and bit into it, juice splattering everywhere, her voice muffled:

“I recall his father, Chen Yushu, was the champion of the last-but-one ‘Dan Yuan Grand Assembly’? Something like that? Oh, right—I remember! The greatest genius of the past eight hundred years, most likely to achieve He Dao! Could it be that his father truly will become a Daojun, and you’re trying to plant a seed early, so Chen Yushu owes you a favor?”

“Nonsense. What kind of thing is that Chen Yushu?”

“He once dared to scheme against my Chi Ming Sect—several of my female disciples nearly fell for his tricks. Those were my true disciples! I didn’t go to Nan Chan Zhou and crush him already? That’s already giving face to Xuanming Wuxian!”

Daojun Taiwen Miaocheng glared, irritable:

“And you call him Daojun? That pitiful creature? He’s fit to achieve He Dao in eight hundred years?”

“He originally seized the destinies of two Daojun seeds to reach this level. But so what? What’s taken isn’t yours. Though he became a Pure Yang True Lord and survived the Wind and Fire Tribulations, the final Pure Yang Thunder Tribulation still pins him down—let alone He Dao in eight hundred years, even three or eight thousand years would be a miracle if he ever achieves it!”

At this moment,

even Daojun Taiwen Miaocheng couldn’t help but shake his head slightly.

No matter how much he despised Chen Yushu, he had to admit: this man was not only ruthless, but also astonishingly brilliant.

Given time, he would surely claim a seat among the Xudu Tian Daojun Lords in the Qianyuan Sichen Palace.

Chen Yushu’s rebellion from Dou Shu Sect originally stemmed from his use of dark arts to seize the destinies of two Daojun seeds, torturing them to death and absorbing their fate-destinies into himself.

When this came to light,

even his own master, Shenwu Shuhua Daojun, could no longer turn a blind eye.

Had it not been for the timely intervention of several Daojun from the Primordial Demon Sect, Chen Yushu would have perished within Dou Shu Sect’s mountain gates.

That rebellion of Chen Yushu’s forced the Primordial Demon Sect and Dou Shu Sect—the two great orthodox and demonic powers—into direct confrontation, dragging the entire Eight Sects, Six Clans, and Twelve Lineages into the conflict.

Suddenly, everyone trembled in fear.

Many True Persons and Daojun fled hastily beyond Xudu Tian, relocating their lineages to other continents.

They feared that if the Xuan-Demon clash erupted into full fury, neither side would hold back, and this realm might be shattered again, replaying the “Zhonglang Cataclysm!”

Afterwards, under the mediation of several ancient Immortal Dao masters, though it was unknown what great price the Primordial Demon Sect paid to quell Dou Shu Sect’s rage,

Chen Yushu’s name

had nonetheless resounded throughout all the heavens and worlds…

Previously, he was merely famed for his roguish charm and countless romantic entanglements—even within the Eight Sects, Six Clans, and Twelve Lineages, he had countless lovers, leaving people stunned, even wishing to join his sect to humbly learn from him.

But after seizing destinies and betraying his sect, he became known for his cruel, sinister nature, spreading dread wherever he went.

…

“That’s true. Chen Yushu, having stolen destinies, is hated by Heaven. His Pure Yang Thunder Tribulation is especially hard to pass. Achieving He Dao within eight hundred years? Probably impossible.”

Jin Xia yawned: “Master, if you want to curry favor with this future Daojun, you’ll have to wait. No need to act now.”

“Fool! Were you locked up in Wu Liuli Tian so long that you lost your wits? Even if I truly didn’t care about my reputation and wanted to befriend that Chen Yushu, why would I start with Chen Hang?”

Daojun Taiwen Miaocheng shook his head, pointing at Chen Hang:

“Chen Yushu, unable to pass his Pure Yang Thunder Tribulation, somehow obtained a secret technique and spawned countless offspring, hoping they’ll take his tribulations for him! By helping this Chen Hang, I’d only anger Chen Yushu—do you understand?”

“What? That’s insane?!”

Jin Xia, who had been distracted moments before, jolted upright, her face lighting up with excitement:

“Damn it! All the drama I missed while locked in Wu Liuli Tian! How thrilling!”

“But if you say it like that…”

Jin Xia suddenly grinned mischievously:

“Doesn’t this Chen family amount to a whole household of filial piety and fraternal love?”

“Let me think—Chen Yushu’s father, now the ‘Red Essence Kiln of Ten Thousand Blessings Divine King’ who governs Xu Huang Tian, deeply hates Chen Yushu. It was this Divine King who drove Chen Yushu out of Xu Huang Tian into Xudu Tian. Had Dou Shu Sect not pitifully taken him in, his primordial spirit would’ve been erased long ago.”

“And now Chen Yushu practices this technique, forcing his offspring to bear his tribulations. How could those offspring possibly accept it? Hahahaha!”

At this point,

Jin Xia was overcome with mirth, spinning her head joyfully, her crimson hair wildly flaring.

Even Daojun Taiwen Miaocheng on the cloud couch couldn’t suppress a smile.

“But this son of Chen Yushu? He’s nothing like his father at all?”

After finally calming down,

Jin Xia gazed at the scene in the hall—Chen Hang and Wei Lingjiang standing in silent mutual regard—and sighed deeply:

“Chen Yushu always wears a smile, appearing gentle, refined, and elegant, speaking with sweet words that seem endless… But this Chen Hang? Cold face, cold heart. Even with such beauty before him, Wei Lingjiang, he doesn’t flinch—looks just like those madmen from Zhongyi Sword Sect. Totally opposite from his father!”

“If he were truly like Chen Yushu, even if this Chen Hang were the one foretold by the Two-Yi Destiny Disc, I’d never let him near any Chi Ming disciple—I’d have slapped him dead already.”

Daojun Taiwen Miaocheng spoke calmly:

“Even if Chen Yushu joins the current Xuan-Demon balance, the Xuan Sects still lead. But no matter what, the Demon Sects can never produce another Daojun—otherwise, when conflict erupts, it’ll shatter continents and shatter stars, replaying the ‘Zhonglang Cataclysm’!”

His eyes, rare in their solemnity, held gravity.

Chen Yushu’s path to Dao was paved with the piled corpses of countless female cultivators.

Even before his betrayal of Dou Shu Sect, his reputation was already tainted—several noble families’ daughters had abandoned their cultivation paths entirely because of him.

His theft of destinies was even more chilling.

The two women whose destinies he stole were disciples of Shenwu Shuhua Daojun—his own fellow disciples.

Yet even so, for the sake of Dao, Chen Yushu showed no hesitation—he tortured them to death without a moment’s pause.

Especially, this dark technique required the victim’s full willingness and clear primordial spirit.

It demanded they willingly cooperate with the technique’s flow, surrendering their own destinies while fully conscious, unclouded by any Dao art.

Thus,

it was clear how deeply those two disciples loved Chen Yushu.

After all, they were willing to give him their very lives—a devotion even many lifelong Dao partners could never match.

And Chen Yushu accepted it gladly. To prevent exposure, he erased their primordial spirits entirely, denying them even reincarnation.

His nature

was truly cruel and bloodthirsty—born to betray Dao and sect—

Had Chen Yushu’s rise not aligned with the Demon Sects’ ten-thousand-year destiny, unstoppable,

the Daojun who loathed him most in the Xuan Sects would have shattered entire continents to send him back to the Wheel of Rebirth.

The Nine Continents and Four Seas had already erred once by allowing Chen Yushu to achieve Dao—it was a failure of the Eight Xuan Sects.

If another like him were to rise,

if he were allowed to gain momentum,

who knew what the future Xudu Tian Xuan-Demon balance might become…

As Daojun Taiwen Miaocheng pondered this,

Jin Xia, who had heard his words, sat frozen below, her face filled with disbelief.

“Daojun, you say he’s merely the one foretold by the Two-Yi Destiny Disc? That’s it? You made me jump for joy for nothing!”

Jin Xia cried out: “But that little disc has never been accurate! You believe it? It’s predicted hundreds of ‘destined ones’—how many of them have actually survived?!”

“That’s called casting a wide net and catching many fish. Cultivation is never without trials. You yourself just said: the Two-Yi Destiny Disc predicts many destined ones, but few survive.”

Daojun Taiwen Miaocheng spoke calmly:

“Only those who survive are truly destined. Those who die along the way? Merely pioneers for the king, dust of heavenly fate.”

When Wei Lingjiang first joined the sect, her master Zhuojing had specifically asked him for a divination.

That divination

sought the source of Wei Lingjiang’s chance to pass the Three Tribulations.

The Three Tribulations were the greatest fear of every True Person and Daojun—a scythe hanging above them. At the threshold of the tribulations, they became three absolute gates of life and death!

No matter how brilliant one was, none were exempt!

He used the Two-Yi Destiny Disc to calculate, as always, and received many answers.

This Chen Hang was one of them.

Whether he was truly the key to Wei Lingjiang’s passage through the Three Tribulations—even as a Daojun, he could not determine it with certainty, nor reveal the full truth.

Heaven’s decree is fixed; how can human will peer into heaven’s plan?

At best, one may grasp a faint glimmer of the “Dun Yi”—like a blind man touching an elephant—to guess the future.

Even the ancient Dao Court, which once ruled ten thousand heavens and ten thousand Dao, crushing eternal time and space beneath its might—

How mighty!

How fierce!

Yet even such glory ended in tragic collapse, scattered like wind and clouds…

No one can fully foresee the future.

No one can grasp it all, as clearly as the palm of their hand.

His strategy is merely placing many bets in advance. If it succeeds, it’s best—if Wei Lingjiang overcomes even one tribulation, Chi Ming Sect won’t need a Daojun; at the very least, it will gain another Pure Yang True Lord.

And even if it fails.

It’s merely a superior Daoist technique—mere Primordial Solar Divine Light—letting it go isn’t a loss…

…

“Even if this boy is not the destined one to resolve Xiao Wei’s Three Calamities, with his Tai Shi Yuan Zhen aiding him, plus the ‘Ten Thousand Li Illuminating Talisman’ and ‘Golden Light Divine Talisman’ I bestowed, eliminating the Evil Anger Yin Sheng Demon won’t be difficult. This at least settles the matter with the Ai clan.”

The Daoist Lord Tai Wen Miao Cheng smiled faintly, thinking to himself:

“The Ai clan is growing ever bolder. Do these twelve great clans truly believe that, relying on the Tiansun’s lingering grace, they can meddle in my sect’s affairs? Had it not been for the Tiansun’s favor, slaughtering them all would merely be a bit more trouble!”

“Yet my actions today have served as a warning to shake the tiger. I hope they truly restrain themselves and do not break the covenant established by the Eight Sects, Six Clans, and the Tiansun…”

While the Daoist Lord Tai Wen Miao Cheng pondered this,

Jin Xia felt as if he had punched empty air, his energy utterly directionless.

He had never seen his Daoist Lord pay such close attention to an outsider before.

At first, he thought it was due to the man’s powerful background, but then he reconsidered, convinced Chen Hang must possess extraordinary hidden talent—even the Daoist Lord had taken notice and was already investing in him.

After all, their Daoist Lord was famed throughout the Nine Continents and Four Seas as a kind-hearted man, with countless friends; hardly a True Person or True Lord of any note had not received his favor.

Jin Xia had assumed the Daoist Lord had found another fine talent, and he himself had discovered a future powerful ally—he wanted to join in the bet, hoping for future returns.

But then he heard this was merely one of countless destined ones predicted by the Two-Instrument Fate Disc.

His entire fervor was instantly doused like a bucket of cold water.

The Dao is capricious.

The Two-Instrument Fate Disc is equally capricious—

Never mind that each reading yields dozens or hundreds of possibilities.

Before the truth is revealed, who knows if today’s man, alive and well, might be struck dead by lightning tomorrow?

Under such circumstances, not even forming a pre-emptive alliance seemed worthwhile to Jin Xia—let alone clinging to a future ally.

To waste effort on a dead man,

In his view, was better left undone…

“Daoist Lord, you’ve had many destined ones predicted by the Two-Instrument Fate Disc before—yet you merely offered them opportunities. Why are you so concerned now?”

Seeing the scene of Chen Hang and Wei Lingjiang still reflected in the hall, Jin Xia scowled:

“We don’t even know if Chen Hang is destined! His family background is terrible—filial and fraternal to a fault! He might die sooner than anyone else. Don’t watch him! Watching is useless!”

“You’re right, there have been many destined ones before—but have you ever seen Xiao Wei be this close to anyone?”

The Daoist Lord Tai Wen Miao Cheng spoke with interest:

“This girl always keeps a cold face, never softening her words—yet now she’s blushing and shy? Quite amusing. It almost gives me the strange feeling of marrying off my own daughter.”

“….”

Jin Xia rolled his eyes.

“Still… you just said his entire family is filial and fraternal—so he’ll probably die sooner than anyone else! Hah! That prediction may come true soon!”

At that moment,

the Daoist Lord Tai Wen Miao Cheng seemed to sense something, lifting his gaze toward the boundless void.

There, in the Xu Du Tian Sea, a ten-thousand-zhang Ba She was racing wildly, swift as lightning and morning dew.

With a single flick of its terrifyingly massive body, winds and clouds churned across a hundred li, waves surged like mountains, countless fish and shrimp were stunned to death, bellies up, rumbling thunderously.

With this Ba She’s speed,

it would soon,

reach Dong Mi Zhou…

“Ba She Yue You—the pet beast captured by Shen Wu Shu Hua from Qu Quan Tian for Chen Yushu? Now it seems to have become a minor menace…”

The Daoist Lord Tai Wen Miao Cheng withdrew his gaze and sighed softly.

“Has Chen Yushu sent someone?”

Jin Xia asked curiously: “Won’t the Master intervene? If Chen Hang is taken back, how will Xiao Wei eliminate the Evil Anger Yin Sheng Demon alone?”

“Why the rush?”

The Daoist Lord Tai Wen Miao Cheng tapped his fingers, calculating calmly: “By the time the little serpent reaches Dong Mi Zhou, the demon will already be gone—Xiao Wei will have succeeded.”

“And after that, the Master won’t care whether Chen Hang lives or dies?”

Jin Xia grinned.

“I’m not his father—why should I meddle? Besides, even his own father is a worthless fool. Why should I overstep? You fool, what do you take the Daoist Lord for? A personal attendant? Do you think I have that kind of time?”

The Daoist Lord Tai Wen Miao Cheng glared.

“I gifted Chen Hang a Dao technique; he fell into my scheme, formed a bond with Xiao Wei, and together they eliminated the demon—this is perfectly balanced.”

“But what if he truly is the destined one?”

“You said it yourself—only those who survive are destined. If he dies, what’s the point?”

The Daoist Lord Tai Wen Miao Cheng smiled faintly.

Then he gently waved his hand, obscuring the images of Chen Hang and Wei Lingjiang.

“At my age, I simply can’t bear to watch young people in love—it stirs the heart uncomfortably… Let the young ones figure out their own affairs. Now, let’s have some entertainment!”

He clapped his hands enthusiastically.

Outside the hall, a troupe of Jing Miao musicians and flying celestial deities entered, bowed respectfully before the Cloud Couch, and began playing—melodious, clear, exquisitely pleasing, their sound serene, delicate, and filling the air.

Seeing his Daoist Lord tapping along to the rhythm, even Jin Xia, who knew nothing of music, listened quietly for a while and couldn’t help swaying his head.

He had once, out of mischief and competitiveness, been captured by a great Venerable of the Buddhist Gate and taken to Wu Liu Li Tian.

There, every day, old monks chanted sutras of liberation, trying to purify his true consciousness.

Though later rescued by his Daoist Lord, Jin Xia still felt his mind filled with “Om Mani Padme Hum,” disturbing his inner peace.

Today, hearing this music,

he felt a transcendent, blissful lightness, and couldn’t help becoming entranced.

…

…

Southern Region of Dong Mi Zhou.

Fu Yu Lake.

Chen Hang and Wei Lingjiang fell silent for a moment.

As Wei Lingjiang tightly pressed her lips, about to speak first,

Chen Hang suddenly changed expression, grabbed her, and swiftly shut the door.

“You—”

Taken by surprise, Wei Lingjiang stumbled, and when she finally recovered from her shock, she found herself inside Chen Hang’s bedroom.

His tall, upright frame loomed close before her, blocking the sunlight streaming through the window, giving her an inexplicable sense of pressure—like a jade mountain about to collapse.

“Are you mad?!”

Wei Lingjiang’s cheeks flushed again, and she transmitted her voice loudly, both embarrassed and furious.

“Someone’s coming—Luo Zhang, and others…”

Chen Hang bent slightly, leaning close to her, frowning as he transmitted:

“Don’t make a sound. Understood?”

…

…

Combined. Today’s over.