Convergence, Parting, and the Seizure of Fates!

Du Chen slowly lowered his head. "You'll let me go if I tell you Alex's whereabouts? Fine, I *could* concoct a wild tale and hoodwink a naive girl like you! But if I leave, will Sword Slave and Dragonfinch—or even Margaret, who stands behind them—let *you* off? I saw Sword Slave's attitude towards you just now. While I don't know the specifics of Water's Embrace Lake, I can clearly tell that Sword Slave is Margaret's spy, sent to watch you! This proves Margaret already harbors suspicions about you! If you release me now because of 'Alex,' it will only ensure Margaret doesn't spare *you*! I can still reincarnate and return; perhaps once the Precious Lotus Scripture is complete, I can even return to the Battle God World and find you—you could wait a thousand years for me! But if *you* die…"

Xue Ji, however, was lost in a different train of thought. More precisely, her mind was a tangled mess; ever since discovering Francis's connection to Alex, she no longer knew what she was doing! *Perhaps… I just want to hear that Alex is doing well?* Yet, Xue Ji firmly believed Francis couldn't be killed. If she killed him, how would she ever see Alex again?

The two remained locked in a stalemate. Du Chen said nothing, and Xue Ji's Water's Embrace Sword hovered unmoving before his chest. Just then, Snoopy sprang forward. "Damn it, Francis, have you gone stupid? This simple girl is clearly easy to fool! With your brain, isn't it too easy to weave a few lies to trick her? Why are you just standing there in a daze? Hmph, if you won't do it, *this grandpa* will!" The bunny-grandpa stomped his foot and declared, "Are you serious? If I tell you news of Alex, you'll let us go?"

"Yes," Xue Ji said urgently, "but don't think of deceiving me!" "It's precisely you I'm going to deceive!" Snoopy blurted out, "Actually, Alex is also a disciple of Du Chen, the Divine. Currently, he—" "Silence!" Du Chen cut him off coldly. Xue Ji frowned, crying out, "Francis, you shut up! Fake Seins, you continue!"

Though Snoopy usually bickered with Du Chen due to his foul temper, he had never seen such a chilling threat directed at him. A sudden jolt of surprise ran through him, and he dared not utter another word.

Du Chen sighed listlessly, lowering his gaze. "Miss, why are you so insistent on asking about Alex? Even if I knew and told you, what could you do?"

Xue Ji froze. Indeed, even if she knew Alex's whereabouts, could she truly disregard her Master's decades of nurturing grace, betray Water's Embrace Lake to seek Alex, and then clash swords with her Master? On one side, a Master as dear as a birth mother; on the other, a lover who tugged at her heartstrings… Xue Ji's heart seemed to split in two.

*Drip*. A single tear fell onto the Green Cloud. Xue Ji wearily lowered her longsword and, with a bitter wave of her hand, said, "Go. I won't kill Alex's friend…"

Du Chen sharply raised his head, staring at Xue Ji in astonishment. "You're truly letting us go?" Xue Ji remained silent.

Du Chen smiled. "My thanks! Alex, like me, was indeed taught by Du Chen, the Divine, and even received a sacred artifact bestowed by him… so he's technically my Senior Brother! However, he's not from Durkes City; he has his own influence and power. As for where he is now, I truly don't know!"

Xue Ji paused, slightly stunned. *Why are you willing to disclose Alex's whereabouts now?*

Du Chen felt a pang in his chest. By saying this, he was effectively transforming "Alex" from Water's Embrace Lake's enemy into a mere passerby! *Until I have the power to confront Margaret, foolish girl, I will not tell you who 'Alex' truly is… This way, Xue Ji might not suffer in the chasm between her kin and her beloved, nor worry daily about being forced by her Master to slay her love, will she? You are my woman; it is my duty to keep sorrow far from you!*

Du Chen glanced at the sea beneath the clouds. Many members of the Great Triangle Navy were looking up at the sky, watching the spectacle. Though they couldn't discern what was happening above, they surely knew that people from Water's Embrace Lake were acting in the heavens… In other words, witnesses were plentiful!

Du Chen beckoned to Snoopy. "You've seen Andy after his transformation, how he became the Composite Fiend, Pamir!" Snoopy paused, bewildered, but still obeyed Du Chen's command, transforming into that Peerless Fiend with a Behemoth's Form, Dragon's Wings, and Tiger King's Claws! Xue Ji stared, taken aback!

Du Chen's Green Cloud slowly retreated as he declared aloud, "Miss, you were ordered to pursue Francis, and you succeeded! But Pamir, the Divine Guardian Beast of Du Chen's Divine Cult, suddenly appeared and repelled you—tens of thousands of Great Triangle Navy personnel in the Grand Delta Sea witnessed Pamir's aerial appearance. They are your proof!"

Xue Ji's beautiful eyes were filled with continuous astonishment. Seeing Du Chen already far away, she cried out urgently, "If you see Alex, tell him there's someone in Water's Embrace Lake willing to wait for him… forever!" It was as if a dagger had been plunged into his heart, yet Du Chen burst into raucous laughter, yelling like a rogue, "Beauty, I told you, I'm not familiar with Alex, and I have no interest in relaying messages for you!"

As the figure faded into the distance, Du Chen collapsed onto the Green Cloud, kneeling in despair. He knew not if it was his injuries flaring up, or…

A long time passed. Xue Ji still stood rooted in the sky, her mind a whirlwind of countless thoughts, utterly lost in a daze.

Thoughts as tangled as a Wad of Cloth filled her mind. The sound and appearance of that person seemed right before her eyes. Xue Ji thought in a daze, until… A faint, dim tear appeared on her chest. This crystalline tear, translucent and shimmering, resembled a lover's sorrow, yet within its dimness, it held a steely glint of battle, like the unyielding iron tears of a general after an Asura's war… *Had I shed tears?* No, these weren't her tears! Xue Ji gasped in alarm as a faint aura of killing intent enveloped her entire being! The Thirteenth-Tier Water's Embrace Sword suddenly transformed into a curtain of water before her chest, and her graceful figure arced backward, dodging the tear like a crescent moon. "Star Tears? You are…"

"Half a year has passed! I never imagined you could evade one of my moves!" A hoarse voice accompanied a vague figure that shimmered into existence: a red Flat-Top's Helm, a dark clerical robe—it was none other than Number Eight, who had once nearly killed Xue Ji with a single strike! Number Eight, of Jamis's Requiem Death Knights!

The situation drastically shifted. Xue Ji hastily bolstered her spirits, widening the distance as she glared at the suddenly appearing Requiem Death Knight. "It's you?" *That's wrong! Master is personally leading the Water's Embrace Puppet Legion to annihilate the Requiem Death Knights; how could Number Eight suddenly appear here? He should be forced into a panicked retreat by Master!*

Number Eight's laughter was muffled. "You can't fathom why I'm here, can you? Heh heh, it's quite simple. Our leader knew Batuoke had once saved Sword Slave's life, and that you would definitely attend the Thunder God's Millennium Celebration. So… I came here. Coincidentally, I spotted you standing here in a daze the moment I entered this sea region! It seems the Goddess of Fate truly isn't smiling upon you!"

Xue Ji gripped her Water's Embrace Sword tightly and let out a cold snort. "Is that so? It seems my Master's Puppet Legion hasn't managed to trap you!" As she spoke, the tip of her sword arced upwards, and a crescent moon, accompanied by shimmering threads of water, assailed Number Eight!

Number Eight remained unhurried. Points of starlight around him scattered the water threads as he chuckled, "The Water's Embrace Puppet Legion is indeed formidable, and Margaret's military strategies are worthy of her title as Marshal of the Fallen Gods… But unfortunately! We have an old fellow among us, whom many years ago was described thus: This old man has three great passions in life. First, wine tasting; second, reading; and third… defying the heavens to change fate, and winning battles that are absolutely impossible to win!"

Xue Ji's heart trembled. *So the toothless, disheveled old man I saw that day was indeed…* *Hmph! Number Eight is telling me all this because he's convinced he has me cornered!*

Xue Ji gritted her teeth. Her longsword vanished abruptly, and immediately afterward, the sun and moon contended for glory in the sky. Beneath the clear blue expanse, a misty moonlight surprisingly appeared, spiraling like lightning to strike Number Eight!

Number Eight remained unhurried, easily dodging the tracing moonlight. Yet, he commented, as if lecturing a junior, "A Secret Technique developed from the Divine Emperor's Esoteric Transmission of the Myriad Ages' Nine Gods Art, quite good, called… Moon Wheel Dance, isn't it? With your Eleventh-Tier battle qi, paired with the Thirteenth-Tier Water's Embrace Sword to unleash this move, perhaps you could contend with Sama IX and Samuel! But alas, that is merely the power of an Eleventh-Tier pinnacle…"

Number Eight gave a soft cry, and starlight glittered around him. Among the sun and moon in the heavens, brilliant constellations appeared, all three—sun, moon, and stars—manifesting in one sky, a spectacle of breathtaking beauty!

"Eleventh-Tier pinnacle… that was my level at thirty-six years old. And when I was one hundred and twenty-six… I no longer bothered to give it a second glance. This year, I am two hundred and ninety-eight!"

Number Eight paused after each statement, yet between each pause, a point of starlight would Detonate, bombarding the moonlight. When his brief words concluded, Xue Ji's Moon Wheel shattered into fragments of light, and she herself was shaken so violently that she coughed up a mouthful of fresh blood!

"Cough, cough!" Xue Ji's Secret Technique had been shattered. Clutching her chest, she turned to flee, but Number Eight had already blocked her escape route.

Xue Ji gave a bitter smile. "The Foremost Battle God beneath the Starry Sky, the first to advance after the Fallen Gods—your reputation is indeed well-deserved…"

Number Eight still spoke with a mocking tone. "Who are you referring to? That person has been dead for a long time. Even if he were alive, he wouldn't be worthy of your praise—because no matter how quickly he advanced, he was still no match for Margaret!"

As he spoke, Number Eight flipped his palm, and a cluster of dazzling starlight appeared within. "Alright, enough idle chatter. You can die now!" With a flick of his wrist, the starlight shot towards Xue Ji's heart!

Though wounded, Xue Ji's heart remained as still as water. Her Heavenly Eye Secret Technique fixed intently on the incoming starlight, ascertaining its trajectory. She then shifted her body to the left… *Clang*. She seemed to have collided with an invisible wall. She turned her head, only to find that at some unknown moment, a dim Star-Cage had appeared around her, rendering her utterly immobile. She could only watch helplessly as the life-claiming starlight rushed towards her!

Number Eight taunted, "This move is called Star-Cage. It was specifically prepared to deal with your Master, but… trying it out on you first isn't so bad either!"

Trapped by the Star-Cage, there was no room to evade the starlight whatsoever! *Am I to die? Alex, I'm sorry, I can no longer wait for you…* Xue Ji slowly closed her eyes.