Journey to the West: I have Nine Golden Crows Inside Me
Chapter 1053 - 761 Shocking the True Story of Investiture of the Gods_2

Chapter 1053: 761 Shocking the True Story of Investiture of the Gods_2

No matter what one seeks, there’s no need to search for it, for it shall appear before one’s eyes voluntarily.

Jiang Chen, merely an accomplished Innate Dao Sovereign, possessed power comparable to that of a fully realized Quasi-Saint—his key was the fate that enveloped him.

Endowed with fate, one could receive the blessing of the power of Heaven and Earth, and the stronger the fate, the greater the blessings received.

In the Ancient Era, those top-tier Innate Saints had similar talents, but why were Di Jun and Di Jiang able to step into the realm of Daluo Jinxian of the Primordial ahead of others? It was because their fate was extremely powerful, unparalleled even by Saints.

Why could the Human Race rise swiftly? In just tens of millions of years, a vast number of Innate Dao Sovereigns and Quasi-Saints were born. The reason, fundamentally, was related to fate.

The Human Race, being the protagonist of Heaven and Earth, occupied the most fate between Heaven and Earth, and hence could rise rapidly.

However, precisely because the Human Race possessed the most fate between Heaven and Earth, it attracted the covetous gaze of others. The Enshrinement Calamity was a conspiracy plotted by the Heavenly Dao to harvest the fate of the Human Race.

Even if the Great Shang Dynasty had declined, its residual strength far surpassed that of the Zhou Dynasty, and it even secured robust support from the Jiejiao Sect, the foremost teaching in the Prehistoric World. Considering this, how could the Great Shang possibly lose?

No matter how one looked at it, it seemed more likely for the Zhou Dynasty to lose. Yet, paradoxically, the most flourishing dynasty of the Human Race, together with the foremost teaching in the Prehistoric World, this formidable combination, ended up defeated!

They were defeated by the unheralded Zhou Dynasty and the Chan Teaching, which wasn’t even comparable to the Jiejiao Sect.

Of course, the fall of the Great Shang was a decree of Heavenly Will, and nothing more could be said about its defeat. Knowing that the Great Shang would fall, the Jiejiao Sect still aligned with it, which was intriguing.

Was the Jiejiao Sect foolish? Certainly not! The Saints were not all-knowing and all-powerful, but they were almost there. Who could scheme against them, apart from those of the same realm?

Not to mention, the fall of the Great Shang was a matter discussed among the Saints—how could the Upper Qing Saints not know about it?

Yet even so, why did he still choose to tie himself to the Great Shang, a ship destined to sink?

It wasn’t that he didn’t wish to, but that he couldn’t.

Thus was the will of Heaven, and even the Upper Qing Saints, as Saints, were helpless in this matter.

Heavenly Dao sought to harvest the Human Race’s fate through the Enshrinement Calamity, and to accomplish enshrinement, a multitude of masters was needed—where would these masters come from? The Mystic Sect was most abundant with masters.

The Human Race was strong, but the Mystic Sect was stronger, even more powerful than the Witch and demon two clans, and not even the Heavenly Dao could destroy this force. While it couldn’t be destroyed, that didn’t mean it couldn’t be suppressed.

Thus, while harvesting the fate of the Human Race, it was also opportune to harvest the Mystic Sect, achieving two objectives with one action. Consequently, the Heavenly Dao, using the Jade Emperor’s complaint as a pretext, initiated the prelude to the Enshrinement Calamity, provoking a conflict between the two teachings and inciting internal strife within the Mystic Sect to weaken its strength.

The Jiejiao Sect and the Chan Teaching, the two most powerful forces within the Mystic Sect. In this configuration, the Jiejiao Sect had many disciples, while the Chan Teaching was less populated. There really wasn’t a choice to be made; the Jiejiao Sect was inevitably bound to the fate of being harvested.

Thus, the Jiejiao Sect was destined to stand with the similarly fated Great Shang!

Why did the Jiejiao Sect necessarily join the Great Shang, and why must the Enshrinement Calamity inevitably intertwine with the rise and fall of mortal dynasties? Everything was for the sake of fate.

Such were the calculations of the Heavenly Dao.

While the disciples of the Jiejiao Sect aided the Great Shang, a strand of the fate of the Great Shang nation was bestowed upon them. Then, upon their demise, the Heavenly Dao could employ the marvelous uses of the Enshrinement List to logically harvest this portion of fate.

On the other side, the situation was the same.

When disciples of the Chan Teaching joined the Zhou Dynasty, they too would receive the fate of the Zhou Dynasty. After their demise, their own fate, along with the fate of the Zhou Dynasty carried upon them, would also be logically plundered by the Enshrinement List.

The Heavenly Dao was taking advantage of national conflicts and the turbulent fate to rightfully harvest the Human Race’s fate.

Whether it be the robust fate of the Great Shang or that of the Zhou Dynasty, both were parts of the fate of the Human Race, and by harvesting them, the Heavenly Dao was harvesting the fate of the Human Race.

Following the Enshrinement Calamity, the Human Race indeed suffered severe losses, with vast amounts of fate from both the Great Shang and the Zhou Dynasty being plundered by the Heavenly Dao.

The divine positions on the Enshrinement List were then forged from the fate of the Human Race.

The war of Investiture of the Gods seemed to show heavy losses for the Jiejiao Sect, but in fact, the greatest loss was to the Human Race.

The destruction of the Jiejiao Sect was true, but not a single excellent disciple died; they were merely listed on the Investiture of the Gods and awaited future departure to start anew.

However, the Fate that was plundered from the Human Race was difficult to recapture.

"Is this the true meaning of the Investiture of the Gods? Fate through investiture, Heavenly Dao truly has intricate calculations!"

Upon learning the truth of the Investiture, Jiang Chen was greatly shocked; many things surpassed his understanding.

For example, the Zhou Dynasty was inferior to the Great Shang. In Jiang Chen’s view, the main reason was the fragmentation of Heaven and Earth, while the Shang Dynasty adhering to Ancient Martial Arts and the Zhou Dynasty adhering to contemporary Martial Dao were secondary reasons.

But now it seemed, that wasn’t the case at all. The primary reason the Zhou Dynasty was inferior to the Great Shang was that Fate had been plundered by the Investiture List. Without the prosperity of national fate, naturally, no exceptional masters could emerge, let alone rival the Great Shang.

The dynasties of later ages were also inferior to the Xia and Shang, all because their Fate had been plundered.

Although the Zhou Dynasty had won the world, it had lost the Human Race’s Fate, and thus, could no longer maintain the power to suppress the myriad races of the world.

"No way!"

"Cultivators are meant to defy the heavens. Although the Heavenly Dao’s calculations are exquisite, those involved in the game will not sit idly by; they will surely find a way to break the game."

Jiang Chen was initially shocked by the machinations of the Heavenly Dao, but he quickly regained his senses, believing that things were not so simple.

The Heavenly Dao is powerful, but so are the cultivators. They couldn’t possibly allow the Heavenly Dao to manipulate them without acting.

Going with the flow of Heaven is not the way of cultivators. If the Heavenly Dao dictates their actions, then what’s the point of cultivating the Dao? Better to be a mortal, experiencing birth, aging, sickness, and death—perfectly aligning with the will of Heaven.

"The true nature of the Battle of Investiture must be incredibly fascinating."

The more Jiang Chen thought about it, the more excited he became. If his conjecture was right, the battle was not just a war between two nations or even a conflict between two sects, but also involved some trying to wrestle with the Heavenly Dao.

Of course, judging by the outcomes, these individuals had clearly failed, but the process must have been extremely thrilling and fascinating, enough to inspire later generations.

Feeling exhilarated, Jiang Chen pressed himself against the wall and meticulously observed the marks left by the Patriarch Jiang Ziya, attempting to find more details about the great war of Investiture.

Then, he indeed found some information about the battle from the several Innate scriptures. Although not detailed, it helped him understand the thoughts of some individuals involved.

Like his master, the Upper Qing Saint! No, back then, he should be called Leader Tongtian.

As a supreme Saint of Primordial Chaos, Leader Tongtian naturally would not readily accept being manipulated by the Heavenly Dao or being a part of its scheme in sacrificing the huge Jiejiao Sect.

The scheming of the Heavenly Dao was indeed profound, but Leader Tongtian’s cultivation was extraordinary, and he saw through it at the first moment. Therefore, he disagreed to sign on the Investiture list, aiming to delay the time of the great calamity.

Two sects and three dynasties—who knew whether those two Saints were intentionally delaying time?

After all, what the Heavenly Dao aimed to harvest was the Mystic Sect, which included not just the Jiejiao Sect but also the Chan Teaching. In this move, the Heavenly Dao targeted the Sanqing!

Latter, seeing that delaying time was futile and the Enshrinement Calamity was inevitable, Leader Tongtian immediately notified his disciples to stay within their sect’s boundaries, silently recite the Huang Ting, and not to venture into the dusty world.

Leader Tongtian had a good plan; as long as they stayed at home and didn’t go out, even if the Enshrinement Calamity was strong, it couldn’t affect them.

However, they did not venture out, but the number of tribulations proactively came knocking. Through the efforts of Shen Gongbao, the vast Jiejiao Sect was dragged into the mire of the Enshrinement Calamity.

At that moment, Leader Tongtian was truly furious, thinking that the Heavenly Dao was too excessive. He had actively avoided conflict, yet the Heavenly Dao was relentless.

Therefore, he decided to actively enter into the calamity.

ps: Ah, today was really unlucky. My electric bike ran out of power halfway through the ride, and I had to push it for several kilometers, which delayed my writing.