Chapter 312: The Fate

"The Five Immortal Sects have already had disciples consume the relic fruit, and their realms have risen rapidly with no abnormalities or corruption observed."

"However, each immortal sect employs different methods: some refine it into a medicinal decoction, others turn it into pills, and some even dissolve it into their external qi and blood before absorption."

"Additionally, the Tianchi Relic on the western side of the Yongzhou Shanhaige Daochang has been opened."

"One of the Five Main Branches of Wenda Sect has departed for Duanhun Mountain."

"Tianjian Peak has recently radiated a vast aura of the Wujiang Realm—likely, someone of great cultivation has already tried the fruit."

Light spring rain drizzled, the sky choked by dark clouds, all directions gloomy, no light piercing through.

Ji You sat in a teahouse in the southeast of Qingzhou, in a county called Wangyue, holding a message from the Little Mirror Master, examining it closely.

Since leaving Danzong, he had traveled nonstop to this place, then watched the vicinity of Dahuang Forest for a long time, confirming that people indeed entered and exited the relic.

But the immortal sects operated with extreme secrecy, sealing off the entire area around Dahuang Forest tightly—even the roaring floods of Wujiang River had been cut off by secret arts, leaving him unable to enter the relic despite much effort.

Yet, the forest frequently emitted aura fluctuations from breakthroughs, confirming to Ji You that someone had already consumed the fruit.

After all, for cultivators in Qingyun Tianxia, facing a "divine artifact" capable of elevating one's realm, it was nearly impossible to resist using it.

And Yan Shuyi's letter had fully confirmed his suspicions.

Even without alchemists to assist, they had begun experimenting—and even devised various methods to consume the relic fruit.

Dissolving it into external qi and blood for absorption sounded truly sophisticated.

After finishing the letter, Ji You called for a servant to bring paper and ink, and replied to Yan Shuyi as thunder rumbled faintly.

"Two conflicts over the fruit have erupted in Dahuang Forest; two major branches of Wenda Sect have drawn blades against each other. It seems, like your Lingjian Mountain, your internal unity is fractured—now, the so-called divine fortune has amplified desires, and tensions are growing. A fortunate development."

"Lately, the number of people entering and leaving the forest has steadily declined, especially experts above the Yingtian Realm—all but vanished. I suspect this place has been stripped bare, perhaps explaining why Shanhaige opened the relic right before its own gate."

"No demonic seeds have been spotted in the forest—that's good. I'll head to Yongzhou next."

"Qiu Ru dislikes cultivation and loves to eat. Keep a close eye on her. Don't spoil her too much."

Having finished the letter, Ji You tucked it into his sleeve, then drained the teapot's water.

So far, the fruit within the relic seemed truly a great blessing bestowed by Heaven upon humanity, just as cultivators often spoke of Heaven's favor.

Yet the existence of a Dao fruit within a relic—a place that devours people—was itself a problem.

But for Ji You, if this divine fortune truly wouldn't bring disaster, wouldn't leave the land littered with corpses, wouldn't endanger Fengzhou, he truly had no desire to meddle in such trivial affairs.

After much thought, Ji You rose and headed toward the teahouse, deciding to visit Tianchi once more.

As he stood, the sixteen bamboo chopsticks arranged in a formation on the table suddenly clattered to the ground, as if all support had been ripped away, scattering across the wooden surface.

The spiritual energy that had gathered among the chopsticks lost its direction, instantly swirling and whipping the leftover tea snacks into chaotic flight.

After a few breaths, the spiritual energy faded, and all returned to stillness.

The teahouse attendant had never seen such a strange occurrence and stared for a long time before cautiously approaching to clean up.

Three days later, temperatures rose, wildflowers bloomed across the hills.

Ji You flew through the air to Yongzhou and, under cover of night, arrived at Tianchi, not far from Shanhaige.

Located in a warm zone, the site featured a ring-shaped mountain whose summit, Changnian accumulating rainfall, formed a vast lake—its expansive waters earning it the name.

The Tianchi Relic lay within a desolate, dense forest on its southeastern side, larger even than Dahuang Forest.

Yongzhou had only one immortal sect: Shanhaige. Though not written in Qingyun's immortal laws, all under heaven tacitly recognized Shanhaige as Yongzhou's true master.

Thus, unlike Dahuang Forest, where multiple sects gathered, Tianchi's surroundings held only Shanhaige disciples—with even tighter defenses.

Yet, though only one sect was present, that didn't mean there was no competition.

As soon as Ji You suppressed his aura and slipped into the forest, he saw flashes of sword and knife, spiritual energy surging everywhere.

"Second Young Master, we are of the same sect. Why have you suddenly turned hostile?"

"Father has entrusted me with full authority over this matter. I'm unclear why Huo Xingzhong sent you here."

In the dark forest, a man clad in fine robes, his face as radiant as jade, spoke coldly.

The questioner looked up and replied: "The First Young Master is our Shanhaige's next Patriarch—he naturally holds authority over sect affairs. Second Young Master, your aggression borders on overstepping."

"Don't use that to silence me. My elder brother is merely attempting to wield the Sacred Artifact—he is not yet Patriarch."

"You—"

The man in fine robes looked at him: "Once the relic fruit is retrieved, I will deliver it all to the sect. Tell my elder brother to focus on wielding the artifact and not waste his mind on mundane matters."

Ji You watched this scene, finding it intriguing.

Qingyun Tianxia's inheritance system inevitably led to uncontrolled reproduction and fragmentation: if a sect patriarch had three sons, those three would become the three main branches for the next century.

For a vast immortal sect, three branches weren't many—but internal to the sect, their elders, even grand-elders, would vie for succession, secretly backing candidates.

In ordinary times, when all sat secluded in deep mountains, competition was based on realm and talent—who excelled won, and friction remained minimal.

But now, with the relic's divine fortune emerging, it offered everyone a cheat option—and naturally stirred countless desires.

Ji You had once read literary tales of noble families with only one heir per generation, five generations in a row, and always thought: surely they must have sinned too much to bear sons.

But now, placed in this environment, he understood: single-line succession was purely to concentrate power across generations.

Otherwise, even within three generations, a top-tier clan would inevitably fracture from division.

Even with a Sacred Artifact to suppress division, internal family strife would rapidly drain a clan's fortune.

During his time in Dahuang Forest, Ji You hadn't probed the relic's specifics, but he'd gathered plenty of gossip—and remembered several names.

For instance, the Third Young Master of Wenda Sect, and this man before him, the Second Young Master of Shanhaige.

Wenda's Third Young Master was Shang Xijie; his talent rivaled his half-brother and heir apparent, Shang Xiyao, and he had long coveted succession.

The conflict in Dahuang Forest erupted when Shang Xijie suddenly intervened—many Wenda disciples had shouted slogans for the Third Young Master.

Moreover, from Ji You's observations, Shang Xijie had substantial backing—many hoped to use the relic's divine fortune to turn their fortunes around.

After all, though Wenda had announced Shang Xiyao as the artifact's wielder, he hadn't yet succeeded. For Shang Xijie, the relic still offered a chance.

As for Shanhaige's Second Young Master, Huo Xingyun, his situation mirrored Shang Xijie's.

Huo Xingzhong, the true heir, was his half-brother, same father, different mother. Since Huo Xingzhong became the heir, Huo Xingyun had nursed resentment.

In the past, such resentment meant only impotent rage. But the relic's divine fortune gave him a sliver of hope.

It was like imperial succession: everyone would do anything to gain advantage, even if the risks were unclear.

Even if they ultimately failed to control the Sacred Artifact, by increasing their stakes before the succession, they could evade post-succession purges.

The dark forest remained tense for a long while, until Huo Xingzhong's men finally withdrew—for now.

After all, they were of the same sect; they couldn't openly kill each other.

Ji You watched the group depart, then turned his gaze back to Huo Xingyun.

He had just entered the Yingtian Realm, his aura stabilizing—had he eaten the Zhu fruit?

If not, he was truly a prodigy. No wonder his eyes betrayed a quiet hunger for power.

At this thought, Ji You couldn't help recalling Huo Hong, the illegitimate son of Shanhaige who had lost both legs in the Dongping Mountains.

Since leaving Dongping, Huo Hong had vanished—likely a casualty of this power struggle…

He was different. His family had no inheritance to pass down; eventually, whoever's child was born would inherit whatever belonged to whom.

As he pondered, Ji You suddenly snapped back to awareness.

In the dark forest, a powerful spiritual sense surged toward him.

Seeing this, Ji You instantly snapped off several branches blocking his view, suppressed the golden light in his eyes, and leapt down from the cliff.

But the spiritual sense pursued relentlessly, roaring along the ridge.

Hum!

The forest trembled, all trees shuddered.

An ancient figure emerged from the night, hair and beard as white as snow, robes flapping like wings of a soaring eagle. He slammed his arms outward—two wrinkled hands suddenly slammed down through the air.

A vast palm force, wrapped in blinding dark light, crashed like a celestial river falling from heaven, striking the mountain slope.

Instantly, dust and sand surged skyward like a furious dragon, rocks and earth exploded, the deafening blast awakening the entire night.

But when the dust cleared, the old man frowned deeply.

For where he had struck lay only a few broken branches and a spirit stone shattered by pressure—no trace of a person. He felt baffled.

He had clearly sensed a faint spiritual fluctuation, and had chased it with Wujiang Realm speed—how could he have missed the target?

The old man stared at the broken branches, then at the surrounding trees, his frown deepening further.