Chapter 421: with translation of chapter title

You've come.

Having taken off the mage's robe and changed into ceremonial robes and crown, Michelle the Celestial Venerable gave Lin Ke a gentle smile.

His whole person appeared utterly detached and transcendent.

Hmm.

Lin Ke nodded lightly.

It turned out that the place where the Sixth‑Rank Sage of Medici and his companions secretly brought Lin Ke, 'over there,' is exactly Michelle the Celestial Venerable's current residence.

Or rather, Lin Ke, thanks to the Sixth‑Rank Sage of Medici and the Elemental Sage behind him, brought about this meeting.

It is Lin Ke who wanted to come see Michelle the Celestial Venerable, to see the 'shell' of the second beam of light that binds Michelle the Celestial Venerable's fate.

'Seeing me like this, are you surprised?'

Michelle the Celestial Venerable's eyes, no longer murky but clear and full of wisdom, perceived Lin Ke's doubt, and they smiled and asked.

Hmm.

Lin Ke nodded again.

After thinking, Lin Ke spoke: 'Before coming, I had imagined what state you would be in now, but I never expected your mindset to be so tranquil.'

'Oh?'

Michelle the Celestial Venerable seemed interested in Lin Ke's words, asking, 'Tell me in detail, why do you think my mindset would not be tranquil?'

Lin Ke held nothing back, saying directly, 'From your past conduct, you should be someone who will not rest until your goal is achieved, and also someone who insists on having things go your way in everything.'

'So?'

Michelle the Celestial Venerable raised an eyebrow, growing ever more curious.

'So I believe that, even if you successfully switched cultivation and ascended, resolving the impending depletion of your lifespan, you would have lost your freedom, likely breeding resentment and anger, constantly thinking about how to break free and regain liberty.'

Lin Ke continued, speaking his thoughts frankly.

'Ha!'

Michelle suddenly let out a scoffing laugh and then said, 'How do you know I'm not spending all day thinking about how to shake off my bonds and regain freedom? Perhaps my calm is just a pretense—feigning madness and foolishness, which isn't hard; who wouldn't do that?'

Lin Ke fell silent.

It wasn't that he had nothing to say; rather, he felt such words didn't merit a reply.

In the mage's path, why does the 'transformation period' of a third‑rank mage advancing to fourth‑rank sage demand authenticity?

Why can the mortal‑immortal warrior's 'vision of the divine' realm illuminate the mind and see nature?

For the same reason.

Only by seeing one's own heart clearly can one go farther and climb higher.

Michelle the Celestial Venerable has now gone as far as possible and climbed as high as can be; they must have already attained insight into heart and nature.

When their lifespan was about to end, Michelle did not wish to die, so they tried every means and exhausted every method to prolong life and to ascend.

Now, from Lin Ke's perspective, if Michelle wanted to do something, they would certainly not bother with any pretense.

Because Michelle the Celestial Venerable wants to break free of their bonds and regain liberty, they face the same celestials, celestial venerables, and sages.

As a ninth‑rank grand sage they had no pretense; now that they have become a celestial venerable, do they still need to feign? Has their ascent been for nothing?

'You're oversimplifying.'

Michelle the Celestial Venerable seemed to see through Lin Ke's thought and smiled, saying, 'This time is different from that time. Before, I could openly reveal my purpose without restraint, because even if I didn't show it, everyone could guess. What is there to pretend for a dying person? But now it's different…'

Saying this, Michelle the Celestial Venerable sighed and fell silent.

The atmosphere between them suddenly turned to silence.

Lin Ke did not let the silence linger, shifted the topic, and brought up the purpose of his visit today to Michelle the Celestial Venerable: 'Venerable, there's a question that has been buried in my heart for a long time; I dare to ask.'

'Ask away.'

Michelle the Celestial Venerable chuckled and again showed a very tranquil demeanor.

After organizing his thoughts a little, Lin Ke asked: 'The sage reincarnate Lotessno told me that you personally said you never wanted to possess Linke Grand. If so, why has Michelle Grand Sage's Tower repeatedly targeted me?'

'This question…'

Upon hearing this, Michelle the Celestial Venerable's smile widened and they said, 'You can't ask me this question; you should ask the sage reincarnate.'

'Why?'

Lin Ke was quite puzzled, his heart full of incomprehension.

Clearly this is the act of Michelle's Michelle Grand Sage's Tower under your command; why should we go ask the sage reincarnate?

This doesn't make much sense.

Michelle the Celestial Venerable did not let Lin Ke guess wildly, but directly gave the reason: 'Who had the sage reincarnate make, before their reincarnation, a prophecy of a great upheaval unseen for thousands of years? At that time, your name as Linke Grand the mage was quite renowned. Even the special "foreign guest" Ai Rui Si. Ke La Ke, who fulfilled the prophecy, didn't have as much fame as you. In every respect, you ought to be that special "foreign guest" in the prophecy!'

After a pause, Michelle the Celestial Venerable countered: 'Do you still remember what I was doing back then?'

'I remember.'

'Which things?'

Lin Ke, without thinking, said: 'Prolonging life, and scheming to seize the position of the Mystic System Mage Sage.'

'That's right.'

Michelle the Celestial Venerable nodded, saying, 'Whether it's prolonging life or plotting to take the Mystic System Mage Sage's seat, you have to deal with the moves left behind by the Nostradamus Sage before their reincarnation. So, do you think the so‑called paid gacha system on you has been exposed to my eyes?'

'I don't know, and I don't want to guess.'

Lin Ke shook his head and spoke his mind frankly.

But in fact he already had the answer in his heart.

Looking back at the final clash between the Ruveosith Academy and Michelle Grand Sage's Tower in the mage civilization universe, it is obvious that at that time Michelle Grand Sage and Michelle Grand Sage's Tower were under heavy suppression.

Not only did it let the Ruveosith Academy make full preparations in every respect and give ample time for development, but it also did not, after the clash began, go all‑out.

Michelle Grand Sage and Michelle Grand Sage's Tower also had other considerations and other precautions.

It proved that the precautions and defenses of Great Sage Michelle and the Tower of the Great Sage Michelle were not in vain.

Not only did the High Council intervene in that skirmish, taking sides, but the will of the wizard world did the same.

Perhaps even before the skirmish began, Great Sage Michelle had already foreseen this outcome.

After all, she is a ruthless person who dared to vie for the position of the Mystic System Wizard Saint; to say that Great Sage Michelle has no accomplishment or insufficient accomplishment in the two major branches of curses and prophecy within the Mystic System wizards—who would believe that?

Based on this, even if Great Sage Michelle had not foreseen Linke's existence, she could still uncover the "paid gacha system" on him by unraveling the various moves laid beneath Nostradamus' Great Curtain.

Thus, Lin Ke wholeheartedly believed that Heavenly Venerable Michelle had long discovered the existence of the "paid gacha system".

Ah!

Heavenly Venerable Michelle sighed, looking somewhat bored, and said, "You're no fun, believing so quickly."

"I can't help but believe." Lin Ke replied lightly.

Hehe...

Chuckling lightly, Heavenly Venerable Michelle continued with the topic she hadn't finished earlier: "In my view back then, longevity and advancement were two sides of the same coin, but there is actually another path one can take. This path is extremely treacherous and fraught with risk; if mishandled, it leads to utter annihilation. Then one day I realized that, whether it be longevity, advancement, or that treacherous path—reincarnation—none can bypass a certain person, the Nostradamus Saint! Tell me, should I seize the Linke Grand wizard who obviously carries an important move of the Nostradamus Saint, hold him in hand, and study him well? Or..."

Or what?

Lin Ke keenly sensed that Michelle's "or" was the true motive behind the Tower of the Great Sage Michelle's repeated targeting of him.

Heavenly Venerable Michelle's smile widened: "Or, like a cat catching a mouse, by targeting you I could draw out more of the Nostradamus Saint's moves, and… let me scout more opportunities for advancement."

Lin Ke fell silent upon hearing that.

As the saying goes, "beat the grass to startle the snake," and also "cast a stone to test the path."

Originally, in Heavenly Venerable Michelle's eyes, he Linke Grand was the grass beaten flat, the stone thrown out.

The purpose was all to probe the Nostradamus Saint and others, and also to seek a new path.

Having figured this out, Lin Ke felt no discomfort whatsoever, nor any feeling of being offended.

People are not afraid of having utilitarian value in others' eyes; they fear having no utilitarian value.

Busy and bustling, profit comes and goes.

No matter which civilization, which world, everything ultimately boils down to interest.

Based on interest, using and being used become the mainstream.

After a moment, Lin Ke broke his silence, speaking in a low voice: "So, in your actions targeting me, Heavenly Venerable, you have found the true opportunity for advancement, and this opportunity lies in this universe?"

"From your decisive abandonment of the 'paid gacha system' that gave you great help, even said to be your foundation, comes this insight."

Heavenly Venerable Michelle laughed as she spoke a line that left Lin Ke extremely shocked and utterly unexpected.

"Where should I begin with this?"

Having doubts, he straightforwardly asked.

"Hmm..."

Heavenly Venerable Michelle pondered for a moment, as if weighing her words, then said, "Perhaps it was my own realization, perhaps the will of the wizard world secretly intervened, or perhaps those five old Yin moved; in any case, seeing you able to abandon your very foundation stirred me, bringing enlightenment—or rather, recalling the principle of advancing toward death and finding spring in withered wood. Thus, I, whether willingly or not, drove myself and the Tower of the Great Sage Michelle into desperation, forced to relocate my entire household to the dire straits of this universe."

"I understand."

Lin Ke nodded.

This perhaps is the rationale behind fighting with one's back to the water.

If one does not drive oneself into desperation, how can one unleash the last shred of strength?

"Then, not long ago, the Tower of the Great Sage Michelle dispatched two fleets—one to attack the Rivowoss Academy vanguard, another to besiege me—was this also one of your actions, whether voluntary or involuntary, Heavenly Venerable?"

Lin Ke then immediately asked the question for which he had obtained half an answer from the Elemental Saint.

"Perhaps."

Heavenly Venerable Michelle, however, did not give a direct answer to Lin Ke's question, merely offering a vague, perfunctory reply.

This made Lin Ke unable to help but think further.

Could there be another explanation for this?

A pledge of allegiance, or truly as Lotessno said, "as one wishes"?

After a quick ponder in his mind, unable to come up with any useful clue, Lin Ke decisively set aside these stray thoughts and did not continue to press further.

Heavenly Venerable Michelle's attitude made it clear she did not want to answer this question directly.

Further questioning would be useless and might even provoke the other party.

Don't assume that because Heavenly Venerable Michelle now appears so amiable, almost always answering questions, that she will be the same next time.

Human thoughts are changeable; who knows how it will be next time?

Therefore, taking advantage of this opportune moment, Lin Ke intends to bring up the real matter for which he came to see Heavenly Venerable Michelle.

"Heavenly Venerable, I would like to..."

But just as Lin Ke opened his mouth to make the request, glancing at the light that bound Heavenly Venerable Michelle's fate, she raised her right hand and cut him off.

Heavenly Venerable Michelle's demeanor remained calm, her smile fading slightly as she said softly, "I know what you want to see. I can only tell you that it's not that I don't want to show you, but that I cannot. Whether you can see it depends on whether you can summon it yourself."

After a pause, Heavenly Venerable Michelle's face broke into a smile again as she joked:

"To be honest, I sincerely hope you can summon it."

"For I have seen it only once, when I had just advanced to Heavenly Venerable, at the moment my fate was bound by it."

"However, at that time I was in an extremely special state, unable to divert attention to it; I had to exert myself to maintain the state I had just advanced to, which was still unstable, so I simply hadn't the leisure to attend to it."

"Otherwise, how could a mere beam of light bind the fate of a Heavenly Venerable, even if the five old Yin of the High Council and several old Yin of the Heavenly Court all applied covert means?"

"I hope you can summon it so I can take a good look at it."

"Perhaps before long I will be able to shatter it!"

Although Heavenly Venerable Michelle spoke these words with a smile, Lin Ke still detected a tone of resentment.

It seems Heavenly Venerable Michelle's earlier words were not empty; she indeed was contemplating how to break the bond and regain freedom.

Perhaps she simply hasn't reached the point of thinking about it every day.

As for the 'five old bastards of the Supreme Council' and the 'few old bastards of the Heavenly Court' that Michel mentioned, Lin Ke pretended not to hear them.

Ha ha...

Gathering his thoughts, not letting them run wild, Lin Ke took a deep breath, slowly closed his eyes, and began to ponder.

How should he summon the light that binds Michel the Heavenly Venerable, that is, the 'shell' of the second beam of light?

After a moment, perhaps inspired, perhaps the answer had already come to him, Lin Ke thought of a method.

It is still the method of the human immortal martial artist reaching the divine realm—'breaking the void to see the gods'—by means of 'illuminating the mind and seeing the nature,' to arouse one's own life-light.

Lin Ke thought, since his life-light could resonate with the special ruined world carried inside the second beam of light, the 'shell' of the second beam should also be able to resonate.

As long as resonance arises, there is a chance to locate or stabilize the 'shell' of the second beam.

Even if Linke Grand's means are insufficient to achieve this, Michel the Heavenly Venerable beside him surely could.

Moreover, he would be very willing to do so, without Lin Ke needing to ask.

Because, not only does Lin Ke want to break the bonds or rather define the 'shell' of the light that confines his fate, but Michel the Heavenly Venerable also wants it.

Pursuing freedom is the nature of a wizard!