I have Taoism and can understand other worlds

Chapter 566 Destiny and the Immortal Sect

"If I don't rebel, then I will be the one to die." The Prince of Pingnan calmed his anger and his expression returned to normal. He looked at the unfinished game on the chessboard and was overcome with sorrow.

"Being imprisoned here is perhaps my fate."

Having said that, the Prince of Pingnan put down the chess piece. He got up and walked to the window, looking at the magnificent palaces outside.

"If the immortal has come to see me today and is willing to listen to my words, I will forgive and forget what the immortal has done in the past. If I am able to return alive, I will definitely invite the immortal to my residence for a chat."

"Has Your Highness decided on the date of your death?" Jiang Wen asked with a smile.

“Once I enter the capital, I am like a bird in a cage. Life and death are only a matter of time, why should I be sure?” The Prince of Pingnan gazed at that unreachable place, his thoughts surging like a tide.

He was once fearless and mighty, sweeping away the rebellious foreign tribes of the south with only three thousand soldiers. He achieved unparalleled feats, desiring to be remembered in history. He sought the title of king and marquis, intending to pacify the south. He ruled over four southern prefectures, commanding a million soldiers. He believed the world was his domain, and he could restore the prosperous era of the Great Qian Dynasty. Who could have foreseen that he would one day witness the wickedness of the emperor, and that his brothers' blood would stain the dragon throne? The person on that throne was no longer the gentle and kind third brother of the past, but a cannibalistic monster in human skin.

That day, he fled the capital in a panic, hiding in the south, living in constant fear. Desperate for survival, he began visiting various immortal sects, but despite being the Prince of Pingnan, none answered his call. With nowhere else to turn, he could only seek out extraordinary talents from all over the land.

He later obtained twenty-four seals to create a map, and planned for decades. He thought he would finally be able to trap them, but he never expected that his efforts would be in vain.

"Perhaps, this is fate." The Prince of Pingnan sighed, looking up at the sky, feeling the weight of his past glory. He turned to look at Jiang Wen, his expression devout, and asked, "I still do not know the immortal's name."

"This humble Taoist priest is Jiang Wen." Jiang Wen said.

"Immortal Jiang." Prince Pingnan bowed again. "Although I had a grudge against Immortal Jiang in the past, it is now wiped clean. It is fate that we meet today. But there is one thing I would like to ask for your help with."

"What can I do for Your Highness?"

"Since my capture, my wife and children are all in the south. If you have the time, could you please give this to them?" King Pingnan said, taking out a tiger seal from his robes. The seal was made of gold and had black markings on it. "This is my tiger seal, the key to my treasure vault. Inside the seal is a map of the vault's location, which leads to the treasures I have collected over the years. If you are interested in anything in the vault, you may take whatever you wish."

Jiang Wen stared at the tiger seal, utterly bewildered by the Prince of Pingnan's actions. They had only just met, and there were previous grudges between them. Yet this man had handed him the key to the treasure vault upon their first meeting and even asked for his help. Wasn't he afraid that the Prince of Pingnan would seize the treasure vault for himself?

"Aren't you afraid I'll monopolize this treasure trove?" Jiang Wen asked, puzzled.

"Although my treasury contains countless treasures, they are nothing but dirt to you, Immortal. Your presence here today is surely not a spur-of-the-moment decision, and I can certainly see that you are a gentleman. Moreover, your willingness to oppose me to save my niece, Yunshang, shows that you are not a treacherous person." A smile appeared on the haggard face of the Prince of Pingnan as he tore off the tiger seal and threw it to Jiang Wen.

"Finally, tell my wife... I am sorry to her."

After saying this, the Prince of Pingnan remained silent. Jiang Wen, holding the tiger seal, looked at the Prince of Pingnan's retreating figure and said, "If I could save you, wouldn't you want to escape?"

"No." The Prince of Pingnan shook his head. "Even if I escape, where can I run to? This world ultimately belongs to the Great Qian. I've come here prepared to die. I beg you, Immortal Master, not to risk your life for me. My third brother is not so easy to deal with. Fate is difficult to defy." "Fate is difficult to defy?" Jiang Wen tossed the tiger seal aside, taking one last look at the Prince of Pingnan's lonely figure. He walked out of the hall and soared into the sky. "Is fate truly difficult to defy?"

"Difficult my foot." Mako's voice arrived as expected, full of disdain. "That kid is just scared of being beaten up, he doesn't have a shred of courage."

"Does the sect leader have a plan to deal with this?" Jiang Wen asked with a smile, his words subtly hinting at Zhen Yangzi.

Zhenyangzi didn't hide anything and spilled the beans: "This Mandate of Heaven is nothing more than the imperial power of the Son of Heaven. Holding this Mandate of Heaven allows one to control the fortune of humanity. Following it means receiving the protection of the Mandate of Heaven, while going against it means defying humanity. That's why my nephew finds the Mandate of Heaven difficult to defy. But if one has the Twenty-Four Seals or the treasures of Emperor Tai Cang, one can temporarily resist the Mandate of Heaven. As long as the Son of Heaven falls, then anyone can hold the Mandate of Heaven."

"Do you think the various sects of the immortal realm don't want to wield this destiny? It's not that they don't want to, but that they dare not. Because the destiny is not a blessing, but a curse. The secret records of the Great Ancestor state: Emperor Tai Cang, Jiang Wenji, possessed the power of the entire universe, her supernatural abilities spanned the past and present, she was like a god, and no one in the Three Realms could rival her. But such a person who amazed the world fell into demonhood after wielding the destiny for ten thousand years. Along with her, the entire Jiang clan of Tai Cang was forever unable to escape the curse of becoming a demon."

As Zhenyangzi spoke, he sighed repeatedly. He seemed to be thinking of his daughter, and his voice was filled with melancholy: "My daughter was in the same situation back then, which is why I had to usurp the throne. After achieving sainthood, I finally understood."

"The reason why the immortal sects are unwilling to take control of the Mandate of Heaven is because they fear the curse. The Li royal family, though they are called nobles in the mortal world, are nothing more than dogs guarding the Mandate of Heaven for the immortal sects. As long as it does not affect the interests of the immortal sects in this mortal world, why would they care who takes control of the Mandate of Heaven? The rule that the emperor cannot pursue immortality and seek the Dao is nothing more than a yoke that the immortal sects put around the Li family's neck."

After listening to Zhenyangzi's explanation, Jiang Wen finally understood the intricacies of the matter. He hadn't understood why the emperor, who held the Mandate of Heaven, couldn't cultivate; it seemed he was restricted by the various immortal sects. The reason Zhenyangzi was able to seize the Mandate of Heaven in the past was because the immortal sects didn't care who held it.

The reason he was imprisoned in the Tai Shen Palace's Mystic Treasury by the saints was simply because Zhen Yangzi had once been the head of the Tai Shen Palace.

If this is the story, then the destruction of Taicang by the Great Qian might not be as simple as I thought.

Perhaps the Li clan of Nanqi did not initially intend to overthrow Taicang.

So, what really happened in the past? Jiang Wen couldn't see clearly, nor could he understand. He only felt that he couldn't find the truth in this world, and perhaps he had to go to the Sumeru Realm.

"Does the sect leader know where these twenty-four seals are?" Jiang Wen asked.

"Where are the Twenty-Four Seals? Haha, this..." Zhenyangzi's words carried a hint of embarrassment. "After I used them back then, it seems they were left in the Black Mountain."

"The Sect Leader left the Twenty-Four Seals in Black Mountain?!" Jiang Wen was shocked by this outrageous news. The Great Qian's most precious treasure had actually been abandoned in Black Mountain. This was a treasure capable of defying the Mandate of Heaven; how could it be so casually discarded?

"It was a critical situation, so I fled into the Black Mountain and had no choice but to drop the twenty-four seals. You can't blame me, the Black Mountain is just too strange."

"I feel quite aggrieved," Shinyoko explained.

"This Montenegro is not as simple as it seems."

(End of this chapter)