Chapter 1088: The Crossroads of Mortal Fate

Chu Feng, with his hands behind his back, looked up and sighed. "Isn't it just showing off a little? Why is karma striking so fast? I'm not convinced, not at all!"

He felt utterly miserable, caught red-handed!

For some reason, Li Jiuxiao was in an excellent mood at the moment. He had been feeling quite vexed since arriving here.

Given the situation, everyone else fell silent, staring at each other, observing this chaotic... love triangle?

Then Ji Caixuan arrived, like a radiant moon ascending, casting soft light. Her entire being was ethereal and otherworldly; her beauty was beyond doubt.

Yet, at this moment, she seemed to be scrutinizing her prey, glaring at Chu Feng with an unfriendly expression. Though still stunningly beautiful, her smile was tinged with coolness.

"What did you just say?" Ji Caixuan, like a graceful nymph, glided effortlessly closer. She was slender and lithe, standing a head taller than Chu Feng, looking down at him.

Chu Feng scrunched up his face, wondering why every stunning beauty seemed to need to look down at him.

At the same time, he cursed inwardly, thinking today was truly cursed. His face stiff, he chuckled dryly, "Nothing much, just bringing up old memories."

"What old memories?" Ji Caixuan, with her oval face, sparkling eyes, and smooth, flowing hair, was still exquisitely graceful, but her current cold smile made people uneasy.

Chu Feng replied, "Remember back then, old Li cried and shouted that I was his love rival, and we'd definitely have a fight someday. I thought he was just talking, but I didn't expect this guy to actually hold a grudge. He came looking for trouble today, so I had no choice but to explain things to him here."

Li Jiuxiao: "..."

He had finally started to feel a bit better, but upon hearing such outrageous words from Lei Zhenzi, Li Jiuxiao truly wanted to beat the little rascal to death.

This was a classic tactic of changing the subject and diverting blame.

Li Jiuxiao immediately rebuked, "Lei Zhenzi, what nonsense are you spouting!"

"A true man takes responsibility. Several years ago, deep in the frontier wilderness, you yourself said I was your love rival. Fairy Caixuan was right there at the time and must have heard it clearly."

Chu Feng, with a serious expression, earnestly brought up past grievances.

Li Jiuxiao was furious. This brat was utterly shameless, avoiding the main issues, then twisting the facts by combining incomplete past truths with the current chaotic situation, deliberately confusing right and wrong. His intentions were despicable.

"Caixuan, you know me..." The Tenth Divine King of this era tried to say something.

Ji Caixuan, with luminous eyes that seemed to hold poetry, appeared as if she had stepped out of a painting. She glanced at Li Jiuxiao, then looked down at Chu Feng and said, "How old are you, spouting such nonsense here?"

Instantly, a warm current flowed through Li Jiuxiao's heart. It was still the Ji Caixuan he knew; whether she accepted him or not, she was at least on his side. Could this be... a slight softening from his decade of tireless, passionate pursuit?

"What do you mean 'small'? I have the ambition to swallow the heavens!" Chu Feng retorted, raising his chin.

At that moment, another young girl approached gracefully. Her dark hair shimmered, and her steps were light, like a maiden from an esteemed evolutionist family. She was, in fact, Ji Caixuan's maid.

Years ago, she had held an eight-month-old Chu Feng. Now, she chuckled lightly, "Alright, Ji Dade, stop making a fuss. How can you even say that? You were just a naked baby back then, and now you're still a little sparrow. Come back and admire my young lady in twenty years."

"Nonsense! My name is Ji Dapeng now!" Chu Feng retorted vehemently.

Silence fell over the scene.

Even Peng Huang's stolid face twitched slightly. He glared at Chu Feng, suddenly feeling that this child deserved a good beating!

You Yu, Wu Cheng, and the others suddenly gained some insight. They finally understood the true nature of this scoundrel, Ji Dade, who had wreaked havoc in the Dragon's Nest. He was truly audacious, daring to say anything to anyone, whether it was Li Jiuxiao, Ji Caixuan, or even King Peng.

"Lei Zhenzi, stop your wild talk!" Li Jiuxiao chided softly.

Chu Feng chuckled. "Fairy Caixuan, did you hear that? He still calls me Lei Zhenzi, still holding a grudge, believing that heavenly master's prophecy and truly seeing me as his love rival."

Everyone was impressed. Such a tiny child dared to contend with Divine King Li for a woman, and his target was Ji Caixuan, one of the top ten female Divine Kings in the world.

"Ji Dade!" Li Jiuxiao's face turned ashen.

Ji Caixuan looked at Chu Feng in surprise. Was this the child she had picked up during a stormy night years ago? Back then, they had each escaped within the dreamscape of a powerful being. Not only had he survived, but now he even dared to go head-to-head with Li Jiuxiao. It was truly strange.

Her heart skipped a beat. Had that mischievous heavenly master's so-called divination truly glimpsed a corner of the future? For a moment, a faint flush appeared on her fair, pretty face, but it quickly faded, and her expression became cool again.

Then, she thought of the current grand era in the Yang Realm, and her heart immediately grew heavy.

Ji Caixuan took a deep breath and said, "Perhaps you are not yet aware, but an unprecedented upheaval in the Yang Realm has officially begun. A vast, primordial force is sweeping in, and a crossroads deciding the fate of all races has appeared before you, leaving you to wonder which path to take."

It was expected that she would scold or even lash out at Ji Dade and Li Jiuxiao, but instead, she merely scanned everyone with a solemn expression.

"Fairy Ji, what has happened?" Although Peng Huang was a quiet man, his high status and weighty words made him the most suitable person to ask.

Ji Caixuan extended her right hand, snow-white and delicate, glowing faintly like suet jade. She began to draw in the air, leaving trail after trail, which then formed a sword!

No, upon closer inspection, it was a mace, four-sided with eighty-one segments, resembling a thick iron sword. It was actually a type of whip – an ancient mace inscribed with chaotic runes!

Etched by a Divine King, a void imprint, it would be difficult to erase quickly.

Moreover, it was so lifelike that it eventually emanated wisps of mist, resembling primordial chaos.

Ji Caixuan said, "The one from Yongzhou has awakened. After several years of recuperation, he has now fully revived, and there's a possibility he will gain complete control over this Chaos Mace."

What does that mean?

Many were puzzled; they had never seen this mace before.

"Originally, he unified one-twentieth of the Yang Realm's territory, but then he unexpectedly suffered a devastating blow from endless chaotic lightning. Everyone thought he had been annihilated, and indeed, he had vanished for a long time."

Chu Feng naturally knew who she was talking about. Years ago, a bloody light had risen from Yongzhou, enveloping the land, and people throughout the Yang Realm knew that person had not died and had returned.

Long ages ago, he had dominated the world, sweeping across all directions. Yet, at the peak of his power, he was struck down by lightning, leading everyone to wonder why he had incurred such a great tribulation.

Ji Caixuan explained, "Back then, the territory he controlled was not enough to support him in obtaining that mace, yet he forcibly tried to seize it and suffered a backlash as a result."

"Is this the ultimate weapon of our Yang Realm? The one from Yongzhou, whom no one could contain back then, actually died by a mace?" People were surprised and astonished.

Ji Caixuan's expression turned solemn. "This is not a tangible weapon. It is, in fact, a part of the Grand Dao of our Yang Realm, encompassing all things in the cosmos and melting ancient and modern eras. It is a manifestation of the Yang Realm's Dao."

"Ah, I think I've also heard my elders mention this ancient secret," Fairy Phoenix said, lightly covering her cherry-red lips, her phoenix eyes shimmering with divine light.

"Just one weapon can be tied to the changes in the Yang Realm?" Chu Feng interjected, not quite believing it.

Ji Caixuan was exceptionally serious. "Once the one from Yongzhou controls this Chaos Mace, he will be able to mobilize the Grand Dao of heaven and earth, master all rules and order in the Yang Realm, have no rivals, and command the entire world."

Is it that serious?

Everyone knew that the one from Yongzhou was terrifying, powerful beyond compare in his era. Unless an ultimate figure from the prehistoric age emerged, almost no one in the Yang Realm could withstand three of his moves.

And if he were to fully grasp this mace, he would surely become even more formidable, potentially unifying the entire Yang Realm?

"Not only that, but the western sky is filled with dense chaos. An ancient mirror, interwoven with endless profound runes, has appeared and is about to descend."

"Ah, what kind of weapon is this now?"

"The Myriad Tribulation Mirror... it can contend with the Chaos Mace!" Ji Caixuan revealed, holding nothing back, clearly knowing a great deal.

She added, "Furthermore, the most renowned mountains and rivers in the south are resonating, collectively projecting a blurred artifact from beyond the heavens—an ancient lamp, flickering with dim light."

For a moment, everyone fell silent, listening intently to her words and pondering carefully. Abnormal events were continuously occurring in this world, and several artifacts were about to emerge. What did this portend?

"In truth, the ancestors of your respective clans are all aware of these matters and have gained insight. They simply haven't elaborated to you. However, when you return this time, you will certainly be informed of the situation, because the crossroads of destiny has appeared, and it's time to make a choice."

"Could you elaborate a bit more?" Chu Feng asked. Among them, he was the most ignorant, knowing nothing. Everyone else was backed by powerful evolutionary factions and had heard at least something, and they were all now reflecting and pondering.

"All three artifacts are parts of the Yang Realm's Grand Dao and can form its core. Now that they are appearing, if they are concentrated in the hands of a single evolving being, it portends the Dao fruit sought by all cultivators throughout history: the highest level of ultimate evolution may successfully manifest in the world!"

Mastering three artifacts means controlling the Grand Dao of the Yang Realm, leading to the emergence of an ultimate cultivator? Chu Feng was skeptical.

"Why do I feel there's some huge conspiracy behind this, as if these three artifacts are being intentionally released to incite chaos in the Yang Realm?" King Peng spoke. He had originally been a rogue cultivator, only later gaining support from a powerful evolutionary faction.

The others also felt it, especially Fairy Phoenix and Li Jiuxiao, who recalled certain past events and vague secret messages their ancestors had mentioned. Now making connections, they suddenly felt terrified.

"Are there unknown beings at play in this world, influencing the direction of the Yang Realm's grand trend?" Fairy Phoenix felt a chill down her spine.

"Don't tell me that after these three artifacts appear, three terrifying Emperors will rise in the world!" Bai Yu exclaimed, fanning himself with his Nine Profound Treasure Fan, his face grim. He felt that a true great upheaval was about to begin.

Ji Caixuan said, "The one from Yongzhou is no mere pawn; otherwise, he wouldn't have been destroyed by lightning back then, only to return now, reborn from the ashes. There's going to be great excitement."

Then, she explicitly told everyone that other powerful overlords had indeed returned. They were suspected to have passed away in the distant ancient times but had actually progressed further and were now contending for the Imperial throne.

"My Ji family has decided to support the one from Yongzhou. What about your families, everyone? Will we meet on the battlefield in the future?" Ji Caixuan asked.

"Ah..." Everyone gasped, finally realizing that something momentous was about to happen.

Even the Ji family, an ultimate evolutionary clan that had existed for ages, was getting involved. They couldn't avoid the vortex but had to choose a side? When thought about deeply, it was truly chilling.

"Contending for the Imperial throne?" You Yu mumbled, his face full of confusion.

"What year is it in the Heavenly Emperor Era now?" Ji Caixuan asked.

"It's naturally the 9,876,358th year. Why do you ask?" Someone replied and inquired.

Ji Caixuan began, "The Heavenly Emperor has never been seen, only legends. The first year of the Heavenly Emperor Era..."