Above Destiny

Chapter 780 Stumbling Block

People tend to overlook things that aren't important...

For example, insignificant ailments, non-urgent troubles, leaky faucets, tedious reports, broken tools, creaking tables and chairs...

There are too many reasons: for hope, for tomorrow, for family, for career... to earn more money, to keep one's job.

Even just to survive.

Over the years, so many people have been enduring endless suffering, giving their all, and barely having time to take care of themselves.

So much so that when you're completely exhausted, you realize you've been going around in circles, and everything you see has been completely changed.

The last match went out in the cold wind.

After the last rays of light faded, all that remained in the darkness was devastation.

By the time I came to my senses, all my tears had already dried up.

And so, one hunched figure after another staggered into the darkness, numb and docile, without even the strength to resist.

It's not their fault.

They were just too tired.

I was so exhausted that even breathing seemed to take all my strength out of me.

"Have you ever shed a single tear for them, Mr. Fernand?" Ji Jue turned around, gazing at the burning mess, full of curiosity: "Have you ever truly cared about their lives?"

"Sacrifice is necessary!"

Fernand gasped for breath, his face contorted, and tears of blood welled in his murky eyes: "Without struggle, there is no progress."

Even if change brings pain, it's a necessary torment for the sake of tomorrow!

His eyes widened, and he asked in a hoarse voice, "People must recognize reality and strive for a better world!"
When the flames are lit, wouldn't it be right to wake the people in the iron house?

"..."

Ji Jue paused for a moment, then looked at him.

Within the rift of the past, the prophet's shattered face seemed to reappear before my eyes.

However, they could not overlap with the disheveled face before them; on the contrary, they were so clearly distinct that they could hardly blend together.

This is why Ji Jue was almost unable to control his anger.

“In the past, people have asked me the same question, and even now, I don’t know how to answer it. But this time, I have a new question for the person who asked it.”

He asked indifferently:
"When the flames are burning, will you stay inside with them, or will you watch their suffering from outside?"
Fernand, did you jump into the mire and reach out to them without hesitation? Or did you merely stand on the shore, offering a call for help to those who were slowly sinking, a call that would never be answered?

Does it make sense? Does it make a difference?

Fernand gave a bitter laugh, pointed at his life's work that had been reduced to ashes, and roared: "Haven't you said all that? It's all just putting the cart before the horse!"
If you want to find fault, you can always find a pretext!
Such a scathing question—can't it at least leave me with a shred of innocence?

"Of course it's because I hate you."

Ji Jue's decisive answer stunned him.

"From the first moment I saw you, I hated you, Fernand. It was an uncontrollable loathing, without any reason."

That's right. Someone as lawless and self-righteous as me would naturally not take an old man like you seriously.

But there's one thing that's strange..."

Ji Jue stared at the repulsive face and sighed, "I don't hate Garrison Commander Lü, I don't hate Brother Shan, and I certainly can't hate the Prophet."

No matter how much you look like them.

So who is at fault?
They can't be wrong, so the problem lies with you.

"As for evidence... I'm sorry, there is no evidence."

Just putting myself in their shoes, if it were me, I would definitely do the same, that's all!

Ji Jue laughed, admiring the bewildered and confused face, and spread his hands:
"So please don't misunderstand, Master Fernand. This was never a righteous indignation or condescending judgment from the beginning. At most, it was just a case of the two sides of the same sex repelling each other, nothing more."

As he spoke, he drew his sword.

Chun Jun appeared, aiming at that convulsing, horrified face, eager to try.

"Why don't you let me give it a try?"

He proposed, "If you truly want to change all of this from the bottom of your heart, but are powerless to change the situation in Seven Cities, then let me help you ascend to the altar."

You will become a saint who died alongside the seven cities, and will be eternally remembered in the history of the next thousand years.

But, if—"

Unfortunately, no if.

A burst of brilliant light erupted, tearing through the ashes and flames, flowing smoothly towards that sorrowful and desperate face...

--cut!

There are no "what ifs," and no altars!

A good-for-nothing old man who deceives the world and accomplishes nothing is a waste of food if he lives, and should be nailed to the pillar of shame forever even after he dies.

What needs to be considered?

Just kill him, stop with the nonsense!
Snapped!
A bloodstain appeared on Fernand's face, tearing apart that face of futile resentment, piercing through his brain and arteries, leaving a tiny, sharp fragment in his skull.

Immediately afterwards, the tiny fragment trembled slightly, and a seismic event erupted, destroying life and annihilating the soul.

Fernand didn't even have time to speak; he stood there, stunned, and staggered backward.

He fell backward, looking up at the sky.

Blood gushed out, and there was no more breath. "..."

In the deathly silence, that expression of grief and indignation twitched once more, and then again, the nasolabial folds on that broken face smoothed out.

A silent smile played at the corners of his lips.

"Haha! Hahahaha!! Hahahaha—"

Despite having lost all of its life and even its soul being utterly destroyed, that empty shell revealed a smile, laughing uncontrollably, utterly delighted.

I laughed so hard that tears came out.

"That's fucking enough!"

Fernand raised his hands to cover his face, as if trying to hide that broken smile, clenching them tightly as if he were crushing his features into powder.

Hold on! Hold on!
Reason told him that Fernand had to hold back.

But at this moment, how could I possibly suppress... this rage and resentment that came from the bottom of my heart!

He has acted for half his life, sacrificed decades, and even disguised himself as a monkey or a useless person, investing countless drops of sweat and effort, all for this day, for this moment of achievement!

Despite facing so many hardships, humiliations, and difficulties, even in such a miserable state, they never gave up.

They didn't even back down once.

Even now, he still grits his teeth and dutifully plays the role of Fernand, hoping to complete his final journey from beginning to end.

As a result, the final curtain call was completely disrupted.

The reason for the exposure wasn't because of poor acting skills, nor because of any sense of justice or bond, but simply because he and this unknown opponent were birds of a feather.

Because this guy is fucking mentally unstable!
It's like someone is sick!
It's like when everyone is trying to solve a murder case in a snow-covered mountain lodge, someone suddenly picks up a big knife and starts hacking at the person they don't like!
If I cut the right one, I win; if I cut the wrong one, I'll apologize and move on to the next one...

You fucking bastard!

“I was originally planning to spare your life, Ji Jue.”

Fernán sighed hoarsely, and blood rose from the ground, gathering once more in that empty body.

The moment the empty pupils were lit again, a dark light, even brighter than the blazing sun, shone from them.

He raised his hand, wiping away the wounds on his face, and looked at his opponent with undisguised disgust and regret: "Wouldn't it be better to just take your factory back to the Federation? I didn't even try to stop you."

Why do you always seem to be courting death?

"Sorry, it's a habit. If I see something I don't like, I always like to slap it twice."

Ji Jue smiled: "Besides, if we didn't do this, how could we appreciate your grief-stricken appearance?"

He grinned, asking curiously, "You still haven't told me, Master Fernand! After all these years of meticulous planning and scheming, what does it feel like to step on a stumbling block at the last minute?"

Fernand said nothing more.

In the deathly silence, it seemed as if the seven cities were enraged.

The flames of decay rose violently from the lighthouse, sweeping across the land with unbridled fury.

Unfortunately, it seems to be incomplete.

Something is still missing.

Just a little bit more... those things that Ji Jue had clutched in his hands!
At this moment, with the convergence of the seven cities' heavenly core, Luo Island has completely broken free from the lighthouse's coverage area. Following closely behind, Xiangzhou also began to break free from the corrosive influence of stagnation...

Barry is only half of 90.

If you build a mountain nine ren high, what you're missing is that final step that leads to failure.

There's nothing more enjoyable than watching someone suffer misfortune.

Especially after Ji Jue discovered that he had inadvertently scattered steel nails, dug traps, and buried landmines all over the remaining ten miles of road... Now all he wanted to do was move a sofa over, find some potato chips, shrimp crackers, and soda, sit down properly, and enjoy watching the other party's desperate, impotent rage!
As long as Ji Jue is still here, and as long as Luo Island and Xiangzhou cannot be covered and controlled by the corrupt realm, then no matter what Fernán wants to do, he can forget about achieving complete success in one fell swoop!
In that instant, the brilliance of stars appeared in the dark and gloomy sky.

A purplish-black light.

Each star is like a bloodstained eye, looking down with endless resentment and boundless bitterness.

The magnificent and vast Milky Way transformed into a bottomless quagmire of malice, with endless light of corruption and decay descending from the sky, enveloping everything.

When the final disguise was torn away, the true nature of the distortion was finally revealed.

From Ma Island, Dan City, Yamen, Xi Island, Pu City... those city-states mired in stagnation and decay, came a series of booming sounds, as if some enormous creature was slowly rising and converging on this direction.

Right before Ji Jue's eyes, from within that riddled, hollow body, a hallucinatory heartbeat suddenly resounded.

The dull thumping of his heart echoed throughout Pucheng, like thunder.

A jet-black heart rose from the deepest part of the earth and fell into Fernand's body. Immediately afterward, countless eyes formed from greedy, illusory light flew in from Falcon Island and entered his eye sockets.

The right hand, clutching decay and destruction, rises from the city of stagnation and continues its work. Meanwhile, the left hand, formed from the bones of countless deaths and resentments, takes shape on the island of tin.

Everything he once gave up is returning to him, with a price and reward a thousand times greater!
Even the image of Dragon Poison reappeared on Fernand's face once again.

Soul, life, matrix, blessing, and even power!

In the void, something magnificent and enormous seemed to rise before Ji Jue, making him unable to hold back any longer...

"Pfft..."

Ji Jue laughed heartily, overjoyed!
Only now has he finally realized just how hateful he has been.

But he couldn't stop laughing.

No, I can't resist!

How could anyone in the world be so hateful, and how could a victim be so ridiculous?
By a twist of fate, this stumbling block actually became a real obstacle in Fernand's path to enlightenment!

(End of this chapter)