All Heavenly destiny reduced to ashes
Chapter 212 - 72 Covenant (2/3)

Chapter 212: Chapter 72 Covenant (2/3)

"This is a drop of my ’Emperor’s Blood’."

You Ruhui spoke in an obviously weakened, yet more open-hearted tone, "No matter what, I’ve come to know your true trump card... and even if you know the secret of the Dragon Jade I bear, you have no means of countering it, and might even fall into danger because of it."

"You’ve saved both Granny Huai and me, yet I’ve put you in jeopardy; it’s not fair."

She said, "I can swear to Imperial Heaven and to this blood that I will absolutely not reveal your ability of the Great Void Shuttle to others, nor will I expose your real Divine Skill."

"With this blood, like I used the power of the Dragon Jade before, I can communicate with you from a distance and grant you Divine Skill."

You Ruhui said calmly, "If you need to, you can contact me in advance."

"I will be ready to assist you when you need."

"This..."

An Jing couldn’t say he didn’t need it; he lifted his hand and caught the drop of ’Emperor’s Blood’."

An Jing could sense that the blood seemed to want to merge into his body, becoming a part of him, and thus, as You Ruhui had said, it could almost permanently connect him to You Ruhui, allowing her to communicate with him from afar and even grant Divine Skill.

This ability... was incredibly similar to the one he might possess, which linked to Cang Linzu.

Heavenly Mandate and Companion Star.

Emperor’s Blood and Granting Talisman.

Between these two...

Frowning deeply, An Jing raised his eyes; he looked at You Ruhui and spoke in a grave voice, "This is too much—even if we have in fact helped each other a great deal, even if you could say I have saved your life several times... but such a thing, if you entrust me with it, I dare not accept it lightly."

"If we are to collaborate in the future, this existence, almost like a ’Pawn’, would actually hinder trust."

He spoke frankly, "After all, I will not, ever, give my ’Pawn’ to anyone."

You Ruhui didn’t quite agree with An Jing’s words, "Perhaps for you. But for me, this is a way to show my sincerity."

"Not to mention..." As she spoke, You Ruhui sighed softly, then gazed at the floating drop of blood and whispered, "I can’t guarantee I won’t change."

"What will the future me be like? Will I still have the same pure... initial resolve?"

"Will I be altered? Will I abandon my quest for vengeance? Will I... choose to betray the me who is willing to swear now not to betray you?"

"I don’t know. So, I think, it’s better for you to stand as a witness."

She smiled and said, "If I stray from this path, if I betray you, then let it be you who gives me a lesson."

"It can’t kill me, but it can cause me heart-wrenching pain, severely wounding my Yuan Qi."

This was You Ruhui’s true thought.

An Jing’s Fate Pattern, in her initial view, should have only been ’Strange Mandate’. But now, it seemed likely to be ’Divine Mandate’, only it had not fully awakened yet.

Only a Divine Mandate could possess such an extraordinary, Dao-essence linked Divine Skill as the Great Void Shuttle!

A potentially boundless Divine Mandate, who had saved her, a man of integrity, and also committed to opposing Da Chen... Given the circumstances, the other party was evidently her natural ally.

In the distant past, You Ruhui might still have had some of the temperament of a Royal Residence’s young lady, expecting everyone to naturally ally with and be good to her.

But after so many experiences, You Ruhui understood that nobody would be kind to her without reason.

If she wanted to be an ally to An Jing, she needed to demonstrate her value and make herself a person worthy of his trust.

To achieve her goal, she had to pay a price.

No longer the Commandery Princess of Mingjing from Da Chen, You Ruhui had made her choice.

"I understand."

An Jing nodded slightly, acknowledging her determination.

He extended his hand and grasped the bead containing the strength of the Dragon Jade... or rather, ’Heaven and Earth Core’s power of the Emperor’s Blood.

And when An Jing opened his hand again, the Emperor’s Blood had disappeared, and within his Divine Sea, swirling around the hilt of the Subdue Evil sword, there was now an additional glistening Blood Bead.

"Thank you." Seeing that An Jing had accepted it, it was You Ruhui who breathed a sigh of relief.

This confirmed that An Jing was willing to trust her and also willing to form an alliance with her.

Thus, they both were aware of each other’s trump cards, and she could finally...

Choose to believe.

"I always choose to believe in others."

Raising his head, An Jing looked toward the considerably more relaxed You Ruhui. He didn’t immediately ponder the use of the Emperor’s Blood, just as he wasn’t very concerned about the function and essence of the Heavenly Profound True Talisman now.

An Jing was well aware that some things were pointless to fret over at the moment.

So he focused on the present, "The issues between us are resolved, but there are still many problems on Embracing the Void’s side."

"Not to mention, Granny Huai has at most only a dozen days to live."

"This... I’m also at a loss."

In response to this, You Ruhui looked at Granny Huai, her expression one of sorrow, "I originally wanted to find another Earth Vein’s Yin point and then persuade Granny Huai to transfer the power of her Fate Pattern to herself. As long as she could break through the Inner Breath realm, the old lady could probably live another dozen years or so."

"But... Granny Huai already harbors a resolve for death. Living in this world, she finds no more interest, and I guess, I can only respect her wish."

"It’s not that," An Jing shook his head, "What I mean is, don’t you think that Granny Huai, being a ’Life Holder’ of such a level, would be recorded by the Heaven’s Will Demon Sect?"

"Although we’ve now escaped Da Chen’s and the Heavenly Demon’s entanglement, we haven’t yet severed the Heaven’s Will Demon Sect—You Ruhui, think carefully, if I hadn’t been here, and you had fled all the way to Mingjing without meeting the person who was supposed to rendezvous with you, but instead were taken in by Granny Huai, in the end, it would surely be Granny Huai who changes your fate for you."

"At the same time, you would also come to the attention of the Heaven’s Will Demon Sect. Without any surprises, you would bond with the Demon Sect and thereafter be taken by them, becoming an opportunity for them to destroy Da Chen’s order."

"Although Granny Huai is indeed a good person, her existence represents a tributary of the Heaven’s Will Demon Sect."

An Jing’s explanation quickly made You Ruhui understand, she widened her eyes, clearly also realizing this, "Right, right! Could it be that my original fate was to experience hardship all the way and ultimately join the Heaven’s Will Demon Sect?!"

"No. It’s just one of the choices."

At this moment, it was An Jing who saw most clearly, "And there are many choices."

He now had some enlightenment, "Being captured by Da Chen, caught by the True Demon Sect, taken away by the Heaven’s Will Demon Sect. Or, following your father’s plan, going back to Dust Li with the person who was supposed to meet you."

"These are all choices."

"Fate is a series of choices. You choose one intersection, and you will enter into a series of different paths... Sometimes, if you’re willing, you can choose any of the paths available."

"But if you’re unwilling... you can choose none. Just as you needn’t choose between Da Chen and the Demon Sect’s Heavenly Demon."

It’s not about picking from A, B, C, or D. It’s not about choosing 1, 2, 3, or 4.

It’s about choosing E, choosing 5.

Choosing the new option you create for yourself.

"I see."

An Jing murmured to himself in understanding, "Only like this will the feedback from the Seven Fiend Divine Mandate reach its peak... I see, this is the true ’Topple Everything.’ I understand now; perhaps all previous Seven Fiend Heavenly Mandates took the wrong path..."

"It’s not about refusing, resisting, or overthrowing what already exists."

"It’s about choosing the fate you create for yourself, creating something entirely new."

Raising his head to look at You Ruhui, An Jing did not expect her to understand this point immediately. To ordinary people, the pull of Fate Patterns and the direction of fate are unfathomable, because no matter which option you choose, even creating a new one, it’s likely fated.

But what’s most important is actually choosing yourself.

This might be why those Martial Artists influenced by Fate Patterns, after becoming powerful, decide to leave the world and establish their own nations, create their own Sects.

Even with Fate Patterns within them, they still want to live for themselves.

"We need not concern ourselves with Granny Huai’s fate; she actually sees it more clearly than us and understands what she wants."

Having realized this, An Jing smiled, "Even with only a dozen days to live, I think Granny Huai will definitely make the choice she wants for herself."

"So what can we do now?"

You Ruhui was a bit restless, "According to what you say, we can only stay in this world for three days... In these three days, should we do nothing?"

"I think I can still help you with something."

"Indeed you can," An Jing nodded slightly, "And likely, no one else but you."

You Ruhui asked curiously, "Eh? What is it? What in this world must be done by me alone?"

"House hunting."