Chapter 1252 Invitation
"Wow! What's with the sudden aggression and hostility?" Wang Wei asked.
"When we first thought, I felt you had some kind of connection with my master. At first, I thought I was thinking too much, but now, I just checked, and your destiny resonated with hers," Xiao Tiandi stated with red eyes.
"She told me about her Fate Nexus and her Fated Love. Are you the bastard fate chose for her?"
"So, what if I were?" Wang Wei asked calmly.
"You're not worthy."
"Oh, do tell me how I'm not worthy of her."
Xiao Tiandi opened his mouth to say something but almost choked on the words as he forcefully stopped himself. Wang Wei was handsome, his strength was very high considering his age, his talent reached the top of the world, and his background was amongst the best in the world. By all categories, he was perfect for Xun Junyao. All these facts made Xiao Tiandi speechless. Luckily for him, Wang Wei was hiding his perfect aura; otherwise, it would be evident that these two were perfect for each other.
"You're married," Xiao Tiandi suddenly said as if he had found a lifeline at the last possible second.
"So?" Wang Wei replied. "It's normal for a man to have three wives and 33 concubines. When it comes to a man of my ability and status, it won't be a problem to have a harem of 3000 beauties."
"Bastard, do you think my master is any ordinary woman?"
"I don't know your master, but if all she has going for her is her status as the most beautiful woman in the world, then that is not enough for her to be the only woman in my life."
Xiao Tiandi immediately released a terrifying killing intent. "Do you want to fight? I'm willing to risk it all."
"Don't embarrass yourself," Wang Wei waved his hand. "Anyway, why do you care so much?" He asked, giving him an odd look.
"Don't look at me like this," Xiao Tiandi grunted. "I just want to make sure whoever she ends up with can give her the entire world; that's the minimum she requires."
"Is that so?" Wang Wei uttered. "I thought you had confused the maternal feelings you had for your master with love because, throughout your life, she was the only good and constant thing you've ever known. Or maybe, after getting your life together, you became bold and wanted to try your hands at a forbidden fruit."
Boom!
A terrifying palm with the power of destruction hit Wang Wei. However, a small shield appeared and easily blocked it; he blocked it so thoroughly that nothing in the pavilion was even scratched.
"Oh, calm down," Wang Wei said as he served himself the tea. "How can you be so easily riled up as a Dao Lord? Even if your master is your weakness, you should do a better job at hiding it." Wang Wei sipped his tea.
"Anyway, it's not like the relationship between master and disciple is considered a true taboo." Besides a few strict factions, usually the ones involving religion, no one cares about this kind of relationship. After living for so long, the morality of cultivators can be described as a thin thread. Even relationships between families are more common than in the mortal world. After all, Tier 10 cultivators could live long enough for their family to have bred for millions of generations. After a certain number of generations, some people just don't care — and that's not mentioning the ones who try to keep their bloodline pure through devious techniques and intermarriage.
Xiao Tiandi exhaled to calm down. "Answer my question," he asked, no, demanded. "What's your intention with my master?"
Wang Wei ignored his rude attitude and said: "I have no 'intention.' I must meet her to break the Fate Nexus, and that's what I will do."
"That's it?"
"Pretty much."
"You're not tempted at all?"
"Like I said, if beauty is all she has, that is not enough for me to care," Wang Wei stated. "And as you said, I have a wife, and she's the only one for me."
Xiao Tiandi looked at him closely. "My intuition tells me you're telling the truth, but my mind cannot believe your words."
"That's because you're biased," Wang Wei replied. "You've put her on a pedestal, so you cannot fathom any men rejecting the opportunity to get with her. However, the world is vast, so although I'm in the minority, I'm sure there are many others."
"That's because you haven't seen her yet," Xiao Tiandi rebutted. He knew his master was the kind of beauty that transcends gender, race, or species.
"You don't know me," Wang Wei said. "I despise fate, so I would never willingly let it decide things for me — except for my wife. She was, and will always be, the only exception. So, it does not matter how wonderful your master is. Just because she was chosen for me made it impossible for us ever to be together."
"That's an odd way of life," Xiao Tiandi commented. If he accepted it once, why not do it a second time? However, he could understand this kind of determination and spirit of defiance.
"I believe you," Xiao Tiandi stated before summoning a golden invitation and handing it to Wang Wei. "The celebration will take place in the Ubiquitous Hotspring Domain. That's where everyone will gather before our palace descents, and the guests can enter."
Wang Wei recollected his knowledge of the area. It's a strange place where hot springs will manifest suddenly, many in different dimensions. The hot springs are relaxing, but more importantly, many have special effects, including helping cultivate the soul and body and granting special abilities/talents.
"I'll be there in time," Wang Wei nodded as he put the invitation away. "By the way, how is your time in the rebellion?"
"It's alright. It gave me a sense of purpose, and I couldn't ask for anything more."
"Your presence didn't affect your master?"
"Not that I can tell," Xiao Tiandi replied. "Anyway, it was her who encouraged me to do it, stating she would deal with the trouble that came with it."
"That's good to hear," Wang Wei nodded. "What do you think of them?"
"Them?" Xiao Tiandi took a moment to organize his thoughts. "Their leader, Empyrean Jimin, is a talented individual. However, he made a grave error when organizing the rebellion. He did not centralize power and recruited too many people, creating a situation where so many factions vie for power."
Xiao Tiandi squinted. "I reckon it was not a mistake, but he did it purposefully."
"Oh?"
"After analyzing everything he's done so far, I deduce that his ultimate goal is not the rebellion or the end of this era, but to use the rebellion's name to build his own faction," Xiao Tiandi stated.
"He's that ambitious?"
"More than you think. If my analysis is correct, his disappearance is because he's trying to enter the Paragon Realm."
"If he succeeds, it will be easier for him to control all the resistance, especially since he already has the majority of control," Wang Wei commented.
"That should have been his long-term goal from the start," Xiao Tiandi agreed. Wang Wei tapped on the tea table as he pondered; his mind was on the verge of catching something.
'In the current situation, where would I hide to break through?' he asked himself, and the answer was simple. There were three possible situations. The first is the Source Qi Space, but the volatile nature of that setting means it could affect the Immeasurable Tribulation, thus raising the difficulty exponentially.
The second option was the forbidden place of the Eternal Ascension World, but after the two suns took over, these places ceased to exist or disappeared from the face of the earth. That left the last and best solution — the Lawless Zone.
Its power will not affect the breakthrough since the tribulation originated from True Heavenly Dao. Additionally, if someone else tries to interfere, their strength would be limited to the Empyrean Realm, making it an ideal place in case the parasites tried to interfere.
'So, Empyrean Jimin is hiding in the Lawless Zone? But why haven't I found him? Come to think of it, I also haven't found the Crazy Thief Gang Lord. Could they be related? Could they be the same person?'
Wang Wei's body suddenly paused as this thought flashed in his mind. At first, he thought he was reaching, but something told him to take a moment and pursue this line of thought for a moment.
'When I first met him, I thought his name was associated with nimbleness, which could indicate his Dao was related to assassination,' Wang We analyzed. 'And the information I've gathered so far proves that to be the case.' No one knew exactly what the leader's Dao was, but everyone knew he was a master assassin who rarely failed.
'However, it could also apply to a Dao related to thievery. It's also suspicious how they both retreated around the same time, especially when my information indicated that the Gang Lord's cultivation was near the peak of Tier 11.'
Wang Wei realized his deduction was a stretch, but his guts told him he was onto something. Empyrean Jimin was either the same person as the Crazy Thief Gang Lord, or they were connected somehow. Regardless, he was prepared to investigate.