Ze Tian Ji (Way of Choices)

Translated by: Hypersheep325

Edited by: Michyrr

"The Holy Maiden said that if she did not return, she would have to trouble Little Principal Chen to temporarily lead us."

The female disciples of South Stream Temple seriously bowed to Chen Changsheng, their white dresses slightly drifting in the breeze.

"There's no need to worry. The Divine Empress regards her as her own daughter, and His Holiness, out of regard for you, won't do anything to her."

After returning to the house, Tang Thirty-Six attempted to ease Chen Changsheng's anxiety.

Chen Changsheng truly did understand this reasoning, but why had Yourong given this sort of order to the South Stream Temple disciples before entering the Imperial Palace? Could it be that she knew that it would be very difficult for her to leave the Imperial Palace after entering? Why? What did she want to do in the Imperial Palace? Was she still in there?

He took the sheath from his waist and took out a suit of flexible armor. Throwing it in front of Tang Thirty-Six, he said, "Remember to send this to Scholartree Manor for me. Give it to Wang Po."

This flexible armor was covered in blood, as well as both deep and shallow sword slashes. There was also an extremely tiny sword hole. Only the ties of the armor were cut, so it should be easy to fix.

Su Moyu and Zhexiu did not know what this flexible armor was or why Chen Changsheng wanted to especially send it to Scholartree Manor and gift it to Wang Po.

The Tang clan was the wealthiest in the world, so Tang Thirty-Six's gaze was naturally different from others. Hearing the words 'Scholartree Manor' and 'Wang Po', he very quickly guessed at something.

"This is the Six Protections Divine Armor?" He picked up the flexible armor from the ground and looked at Chen Changsheng in shock.

Su Moyu and Zhexiu froze.

"Yeah, this was originally the Wang clan's, so it's best to return it to Wang Po. He will probably be very happy."

Chen Changsheng then took out a bronze mirror and handed it over, saying, "I don't know what this is, but it should be something good. If my guess isn't wrong, it should be able to control the Orthodoxy's power of light."

This bronze mirror was probably the one Zhou Tong had prepared to deal with the Orthodoxy's Divine Staff. In the battle, it had not shown much use, but to remain undamaged under the Halving Blade made it rather interesting to him.

Tang Thirty-Six took the mirror and gasped, "The Mirror of Pure Virtue?"

Chen Changsheng only knew that the Li Palace had a Hall of Pure Virtue, but he did not know that there was a bronze mirror in this world that shared the same name.

Zhexiu arched his brows and Su Moyu could no longer hold himself back. Walking over to Tang Thirty-Six, he took the mirror and used his sleeve to carefully wipe the blood off its surface.

"Is this mirror famous?" Chen Changsheng asked.

"You've never looked at the Tier of Legendary Weapons?" Tang Thirty-Six countered. "Its position there is even higher than your Stainless Sword!"

Chen Changsheng was surprised, thinking, at the time when I was slashing down with a kitchen knife, I didn't see anything amazing about this mirror.

"Just what did you go there for? To kill Zhou Tong or to rob him?"

Tang Thirty-Six carried the Six Protections Divine Armor and walked up to him, quite perplexed. "You only went for such a short amount of time, so how did you come back with two items on the Tier of Legendary Weapons?"

Chen Changsheng explained, "These were all things Zhou Tong was carrying. When I was killing him, I just took them with me."

In the following pause, Zhexiu and the other two all glanced at each other.

After learning that Chen Changsheng had gone to kill Zhou Tong, they were extremely shocked, but they didn't ask about too many of the details. This was because they had never believed that Chen Changsheng could really accomplish this task, and were even expecting for Chen Changsheng to soon after admit his defeat. But if he really was no match for Zhou Tong and relied on the protection of the Orthodoxy's powerful figures to return, how had he obtained these two treasures from Zhou Tong?

They turned to Chen Changsheng, awaiting his explanation. Chen Changsheng narrated what had occurred in the alley of the Northern Military Department, but he did not give many specific details.

"You actually won?" Tang Thirty-Six stared at him like he was a monster.

Chen Changsheng replied, "Since what I was fighting for was life or death, victory or defeat has no meaning."

Tang Thirty-Six said in shock, "But in the end, you still won."

Chen Changsheng ignored him, saying, "See how to deal with this bronze mirror. If none of you want it, then it's fine to leave it in the Orthodox Academy as school property."

Tang Thirty-Six was displeased at these words. "A matter like last words is fine if you communicate just once, or is it that you insist on constantly reminding us that you're going to die soon?"

Chen Changsheng thought this over and then answered, "These aren't last words, this is a question of inheritance."

……

……

In the view of many, the palace hall in the deepest depths of the Li Palace was unfitting of the Pope's status. This was because this hall had too many eaves that cut up the sky into a well—perhaps this was the origin of the term 'sky well'? But there were some benefits. Standing here in the courtyard and gazing up, one would often be able to see a very tidily cut out sky of stars, very beautiful to see.

The night gradually deepened, and the darkness followed suit, seeming like an invisible cloud that covered up the stars of the night sky. Not even the slightly chilly breeze of the early autumn was able to drive away this darkness. From the deepest depths of the darkness came a voice, very calm and indifferent, carrying a feeling of nostalgia and the weathering of time. Yet it also had another feeling, the feeling that this nostalgia and weathering of time were placed intentionally so that they could be heard.

"It's already been almost twenty years since I've seen the night sky here."

Just like many other people in the capital, the Pope was not asleep. He had just finished watering the Green Leaf and was using a towel to carefully wipe beads of water off the leaves. Hearing the voice coming from the darkness outside the hall, his hands stopped as he slowly turned his body.

"If your actions back then had not been so impatient, perhaps that story from twenty years ago would not have happened."

The Pope spoke to the depths of the darkness.

The person in the darkness replied, "Or perhaps it was just because I did not expect that at the time, you would ultimately stand at her side."

The wrinkles on the Pope's face seemed to deepen somewhat upon hearing this statement. He slowly replied, "These are all matters of the past."

The voice in the darkness replied, "Yes, all matters of the past. We should be discussing matters of the present, matters of tonight."

The Pope placed the towel by the Green Leaf pot and walked to the stone steps outside the hall. Gazing at the darkness, he said, "Even now, I'm still not clear on what exactly you want to do."

The chilly night breeze blew across his hempen robe, seeming to want to drift away and depart this world.

Yet the voice in the darkness seemed to sink down, as firm and indestructible as metal. "I have always made clear what I wanted to do, but back then, you did not agree with my view. Now twenty years have passed and you know that your judgment back then was wrong, so you must stand on my side."

Hearing this, the Pope lowered his head and gazed at the shadows on the stone steps, sinking into a very long silence.

"Tianhai possesses the best blood and talent, possesses the best position, but she is a woman—her vision and structure have a limit, there is a problem with her personality. The past two hundred years have long since proved this. If she continues to sit on the imperial throne of the Great Zhou, even if the confluence of the north and south smoothly proceeds, the humans will still be unable to defeat the demons under her leadership."

A wind rustled the trees outside the hall. The Green Leaf within the hall and the light leaking out of the magnificent and grand Great Hall of Light all seemed to waver.

This was because the person within the darkness spoke once more, the voice growing colder and more certain.

"Do you want the people of the country to be exterminated? Do you really want the bloodline of the Chen Imperial clan to be left homeless and destitute, to wither away by the day until their line comes to an end? Back then when we parted in the Orthodox Academy, we already agreed, I am responsible for preserving the bloodline of the Imperial clan while you will remain in the capital to watch her for a while. A period of twenty years has gone just like that; could it be that you have already forgotten what you thought back then, grown intoxicated in her structure of two Saints ruling the world together? No, I've watched you for ten-odd years from Xining Village with apathetic eyes, but I will not allow you to deteriorate like this. Now that the time has come to put the cards on the table, I will not allow you to remain in this lifeless palace hall, covering your eyes and pretending that you can't see all the chaos in this world."

The Pope lowered his head to gaze at the faint shadows cast by the eaves, silent once more for a very long time.

After this seemingly interminable time, he raised his head to the depths of the darkness and asked, "Just where does your confidence come from?"

The person in the darkness answered, "No person can resist that allure. The ripe fruit is right on the branch, waiting for her to pick it."

The Pope replied, "That child said to me that those who are not Saints cannot resist it, but she has always been a Saint."

"The so-called Saints of the present world are naught but jokes. How could such a greedy and shameless woman like her truly understand the divine principles? If she were sure that by eating this fruit, she could perfect her defying of the heavens and changing of fate, thus allowing her to enter that grand realm above Concealed Divinity, do you think she could resist? Do you know of how much pain I endured on that night when he was ten and his fragrance spread in all directions? If that greedy and stupid Golden Dragon had not once more risked degenerating to descend upon the world and I had not had to go to the Cloud Grave to fight him, perhaps I would have eaten him on the spot!"

The voice of the person in the darkness became cold and cruel. "Let alone the fact that in her view, this is what she requires to complete her changing of fate, the Heavenly Dao's most heartless demand. The fruit that fell from her body will ultimately be eaten by her—how could there be a more perfect cycle of the Heavenly Dao? I can't see through it, so how could she?"

The Pope's voice became rather tired, filled with a guilt that was impossible to easily dispel. "In the end, you still succeeded in deceiving me, and also in deceiving Mei Lisha. In that letter of yours, you never said that this matter would require someone to make a sacrifice, let alone that he would be the one to make it."

"When a fruit is ripe, it must be eaten, whether it's poisonous or not."

"At the very beginning, I thought that by having the fruit ripen as quickly as possible, it could be quickly planted into fertile ground so that we could assist it in growing into a tree that reached into the heavens."

"Once a fruit has ripened, if it is not eaten, it can only rot away. In any case, that child will die. His fate of certain death in exchange for such a great benefit to all of humanity? What problem is there with that?"

"But that child knows nothing about this."

"Every person has their own agenda, but not every person has the ability to make their own decision about their fate, the power to make their own choice."

"Could it be that only you have the right to make choices?"

"Because I can offer to you and this world the best choice…"

"Do you know what sort of choice I and this world require?"

"Mei Lisha wholeheartedly desired the Imperial clan to return to power; you only care about the continuation of humanity. He is Tianhai and Emperor Xian's son, so nobody will oppose him. And please, believe in me. He is truly this continent's most intelligent and most extraordinary youth. He is the most suitable successor to the Great Zhou imperial throne and also the most suitable candidate for the future leader of humanity."

"But that child is your disciple."

The voice in the darkness vanished for a very long time, and then finally spoke once more.

"But he is first a member of the Imperial clan. From the moment he began his existence in this world, he carried the responsibility of continuing the Imperial clan, the duty to shed blood for the Imperial clan."