127 - Divine Mastering Dragon System

Chapter 127: An Old Acquaintance "We haven't seen each other since we parted ways seven hundred years ago... You've lived longer than I expected," Huai Ye smiled. Seated on a mat, the woman looked up at the petite girl standing before her. Her gaze was unwavering, seemingly reflecting the calm collected over years, or perhaps a deliberate facade of indifference. To gain the upper hand, both in stature and demeanor, Tian Ji slowly rose. The woman was tall, her appearance retained the look of when she first reached the core formation stage, now towering over the young girl who barely reached her chest, her face and expression utterly unfamiliar. "I thought the divination would cost you two centuries of life." Though Tian Ji was deaf, when Huai Ye spoke, her eyelashes fluttered gently—she could read lips. Without this skill, she couldn't possibly keep up with disciples' fervent debates during gatherings; she kept assistants to take notes so that no vital information would escape her. Being mute was no major inconvenience either; a single frown could set a hundred disciples and countless others in the cultivation world guessing her intentions. Attempting to mask her feelings was a more challenging task. So, had she truly paid any price for that divination? Now, standing before her once more was someone she had altered fate for—a demonstration of defying destiny to create an improbable lifeline. At that time, barely fifty, she held an inappropriate disdain for fate, considering altering destiny a proud challenge. Many young practitioners in divination shared such arrogance, typically meeting demise from hubris before they learned to follow destiny—often dragging the hopeful fools with them. At present, she was seven hundred sixty-nine, and this was the sole person she had encountered who had been reborn against fate. Raising her hand, she wrote "What brings you here" in the air, her index finger deftly turning the words to face Huai Ye. Initially, when Fu Zhi reported a changed divination, no one noticed the entwined fates of Tian Dao's indicated demon and the ones at Yu Cang Mountain. It wasn’t until Fu Zhi arrived at the mountain that he sensed the celestial shifts impacting more than just the stars. Had she known sooner, she wouldn't have allowed her favored disciple to use the Pool of Body Exchange. This one was artful with words, and Fu Zhi, naive as he was, could easily succumb to Huai Ye’s deception and doubt his allegiance to the sect—a foreseen outcome in her eyes. Despite Tian Ji's well-known disabilities, only she knew the truth of that fateful divination, and... That Fu Zhi boldly questioned her on the matter took her by surprise yet seemed inevitable. That child insisted on viewing everything in black and white, navigating straightforward paths. It was only natural to wonder if Huai Ye knew something when she sowed doubt in Fu Zhi’s mind. The young girl took a deep breath and placed her hand on Tian Ji's shoulder, applying a slight pressure, signaling for her to sit—she disliked being looked down on. "If heaven shows favoritism, willing to plunge the world into chaos for the triumph of one..." Huai Ye mused aloud. "Is such a possibility real?" Tian Ji wrote, "We cannot discern the will of heaven." "Oh, you're jesting again. Hasn’t your prized disciple shared any foresight with you?" Tian Ji acquiesced and sat as Huai Ye intended, though the girl's hand remained firmly on her shoulder, wore a smiling, foreign mask. "Baseless speculation," Tian Ji calmly inscribed, despite Huai Ye's hand lingering near her throat. "Interesting..." Huai Ye bent closer but refrained from whispering into the deaf woman's ear, ensuring their eyes met, murmuring with both cynicism and a honeyed tone, as if tracing a secret between them. "Was I not brought back to life for this? To play the role of antagonist, stir chaos, only to be vanquished by the child of destiny? If I am indeed an incorrigible villain deserving suppression, why was I not struck down earlier? And how are you still sitting here unharmed when you saved me from certain death?" ... Over seven hundred years, half of which were spent in seclusion, Tian Ji had accumulated a calm fortitude. She showed no reaction to Huai Ye's words; her eyes closed slightly, as if dismissing all that was said as unworthy of notice. "Master Tian Ji, such composure—can you accept being but a pawn for destiny?" With a vacant expression resembling daydreaming, Tian Ji conveyed a frosty message—"Not your concern." Though she outwardly appeared youthful, she exhibited a detachment far removed from the eager spirit of the young. Huai Ye sighed, somewhat disappointed, "I thought you might be more intriguing." Naturally, Huai Ye cared little for the whims of destiny; how could she convince others with such rhetoric? Especially someone living so indifferently, paying little heed to the existential musings of purpose. Illogical though it was, Tian Ji had recognized flaws in the heavenly doctrine through centuries of interaction, yet remained indifferent or unwilling to ponder further, lest her deeply-rooted beliefs crumbled in a day. "So, what do you want?" "Nothing, really. Just visiting an old acquaintance." The girl quickly lost her enthusiasm, sifting through a pile of ancient texts, as if merely passing time. Huai Ye searched for something among the volumes, leaving Tian Ji to feel as if she were watching a mischievous cat scattering books. Whether intentionally or not, a text thrown by Huai Ye struck Tian Ji's knee, causing her to narrowly frown, "Not much of an acquaintance if you don't remember my name." Through the gaps created by floating blue ink characters, Huai Ye peered at the woman's cold face, trying hard to detect any emotional trace, eventually laughing after a prolonged silence, "Don’t you have other friends?" "After seven hundred years, who recalls a fleeting acquaintance?" she retorted with a smile. She was always smiling. The girl, barely grown, clearly reborn through some dark sorcery, reformed from a dead fetus. Whether unconsciously or intentionally, the new youthful appearance echoed hints of Huai Ye’s past self, her round, youthful face and honeyed smile oddly complementing each other. Yet, despite these familiar traces, the girl standing there diverged greatly from the person etched in memory. The face she wore didn’t suit a smile... In fact, Tian Ji could no longer recall Huai Ye’s original visage, only a stubborn sense that it shouldn't be the one before her. Long ago, Tian Ji had ceased being plagued by the nightmare, thanks to her ever-fading recollection, the face that haunted her no longer conjuring fears of the past. Even so, Huai Ye's abrupt return dredged up fragments of nightmares that had lingered for centuries: a buzzing in her skull, unnatural warmth deep in her ears, throat throbbing as if excavated and set ablaze. Clutching her shoulders, the familiar cold face displayed a rarely-seen benevolent smile, holding a small black scale, incessantly advising her, though her world had plunged into silence. In mere months, she had learned to read lips, recalling those words spoken when Huai Ye left, clutching a scale, telling her, "Use this scale, confirm your prophecy, and claim the position of Tian Ji." Every Tian Ji successor was chosen from those with the foremost ability in divination, capable of discerning the paths shrouded in haze. The previous Tian Ji had grown ever frail, and she, with the prophecy of the true dragon's fate, found the position within her reach. The generous gift felt dismissive, Huai Ye visiting for ancient medicinal texts promising to heal age-old injuries. Yet, upon hearing the prophecy, she fretted not for her life but for the fate of others instead. Like earlier, she had gripped the young girl's shoulder, hearing her terrified pleas fail to form coherent words, handing over the utterly useless scale. "The book you haven't finished is on the northwest shelf, sixth from the top." Perhaps that person she wanted to heal back then is already dead by now? The young girl cast an inquisitive glance at her. "I recall glimpsing a book about methods to alter one's cultivation and remold meridians." Tian Ji looked towards the bluish-purple sky outside the window. Realizing Huai Ye wouldn’t leave without finding it, she pointed to a pile of disorganized scrolls and jade slips beside her. Huai Ye had vanished for seven hundred years, and whoever she sought rare medicinal knowledge for was either immortal or deceased by now. This method of altering cultivation must be intended for someone new... "Why is Master Tian Ji dabbling with external alchemy instead of loyally serving the heavenly way?" Huai Ye taunted, picking up scrolls one by one for Tian Ji to identify. "Have you read through these books hundreds of times to remember them so clearly? Is there nothing else at Tian Ji's Temple to occupy your time?" Perhaps encountering a past acquaintance for the first time since awakening prompted such talkative behavior from Huai Ye. Still, her demeanor, reminiscent of a young girl selecting trinkets on the street, was irksome. Tian Ji's fingers twitched, unable to resist asking, "You've reached the pinnacle of cultivation, why do you need this?" "Well... Ancient texts from the Primordial Era are mostly kept with the Tai Xu Sect and Tian Ji's Temple. Me? It's obviously not for my use. Feigning ignorance has its limits. You’ve placed spies in Yu Cang Mountain to monitor my every move; you should know who this is for." “I thought joining Moonlight Lord was just a temporary measure for you,” Tian Ji feigned surprise. "Besides, you were never our target." After the failed divination showing a path with no escape, Huai Ye had vanished for centuries, leading Tian Ji to presume her dead—until two years ago when Fu Zhi first reported on the "ominous star," at which point her memory jolted recognition of how the life-ending prediction had erred. As Huai Ye stated, the heavenly way shouldn’t falter; with only death in sight, Huai Ye should have perished. Yet heaven spared her and now sought to make her a calamity inciter. Was the child of destiny born to quell chaos, or did chaos arise to give destiny a foe to defeat? Tian Ji wondered, if Huai Ye did nothing, would fate alter again? Probably not. Temple rules forbid revealing divinations, yet major matters must be reported. Over the years, Tian Ji had seen numerous individuals futilely attempt to change destiny. Knowing one's fate, regardless of actions, only brings inevitable endings... Since that day the satellite star veered off course, the fates tied to destiny grew increasingly unpredictable, eluding grasp from any calculations. Taking a deep breath, Tian Ji's fingers trembled slightly, "If I give my all, what's my chance against you?" Huai Ye, flipping through the book sought, glanced at Tian Ji's inscription and without pause replied, "Thirty percent." For now, her power wasn’t fully restored—spiritual energy returned only to Greater Perfection of the Mahayana stage, yet command of her power remained sharp. Tian Ji, despite possessing an early Transformation stage cultivation, wasn’t suited for combat, posing no formidable challenge. "And against the entire Tian Ji's Temple?" Huai Ye paused, scrutinizing Tian Ji’s expression for sincerity or jest, "If the temple's thousand disciples recklessly sacrifice, they're not to be underestimated... Maybe a fifty percent chance." Tian Ji nodded contently, continuing, "And with allies from Qingyuan City?" "In that case, I'd have to retreat." Huai Ye sneered, "Still, within a sect, minds seldom align, let alone expecting others to go all out." Naturally, Tian Ji recognized Huai Ye's insinuations. However, her successor’s identity was long settled in her mind, unmoved by casual remarks. Yet, the brief thought of her worn-out disciple brought a slight pang of unease. As dawn approached, Huai Ye slipped a jade slip into her sleeve and sauntered out as if visiting an old friend. Halfway through, she turned back to Tian Ji, "I have matters to attend to... If people from the Tai Xu Sect inexplicably drop dead, can you handle it?" Should the temple refuse involvement, myriad excuses abound, foremost among them being the demonic aura sensed upon entering Qingyuan City—a perfect scapegoat. However, if trouble ensued, Tian Ji could easily blame Huai Ye, unveiling her disguise amidst the congregation of the cultivation world's elite, making her a target. Doing so might alert her prey, as Huai Ye pointed out. Faced with conflict, paths to subdue her often required substantial loss, prompting her disappearance again, erasing her trail. Despite the Tai Xu Sect's influence—a dominance that seems poised to lead the cultivation world recently—and the unsettling overreaching by some within the demon race, it was advantageous to have someone else act on her behalf. Without warning, Huai Ye's silhouette vanished into the gradually fading night, a scene eerily familiar, and for a moment, Tian Ji's pupils widened. She couldn’t quite recall what she feared watching Huai Ye leave amidst her pain long ago. In an instant, Huai Ye reappeared within an inn where Yu Cang Mountain guests were staying. Amidst the courtyard’s stillness, no one noticed her abrupt arrival. She barely took two steps before a puzzled voice halted her. "I just went to your room and couldn’t find you, how are you here?" With an enigmatic smile, Huai Ye turned to the perplexed Huai Ye standing in the courtyard, "Sister... since when have you been here?" Author's Note: Yesterday, from 7 AM to 9 PM, a day full of long bus and plane rides, still haven’t returned home today QAQ A heartfelt thanks to all the angels who cast powerful votes or nourished me with nutrient liquids from 2022-07-05 35:58:52 to 2022-07-11 13:29:52~ Appreciation for the nutrient liquids from angels: Lamp Moon 80 bottles; I’m just a study dreg 10 bottles; Slowly 1 bottle; Thank you immensely for your support, I will continue to strive hard! Our site is pop-up free, permanent domain (xbanxia.com)