Above Destiny

Chapter 804 Honor and Shame
The wind was calm and the waves were still; all was silent.

This plunged the area outside the rift into a deathly silence.

All the craftsmen instinctively widened their eyes and examined the objects intently.

Wherever the silver light passed, tears, corpses, flames, burial grounds, and decaying winds all vanished.

The blood flowing on the earth dried up quickly, and the clay figures that looked like corpses turned to ashes. The land remained desolate, lifeless, and riddled with cracks.

They neither fell into hell nor entered heaven.

It simply returned to its original state...

But that's precisely the most terrifying part!

Amidst the erosion of the plague, everything was forcibly corrected once again. After expelling all the stagnation, decay, and distortion, it was as if time had reversed, allowing them to return to their original state.

Not a single point off, not a single hair out.

As Ji Jue stepped forward, everything beneath his feet suddenly began to expand, as if an invisible wall had risen from the ground before the plague, suppressing the overwhelming tide and pushing outward inch by inch...

No matter how hysterical, how fiercely it fought back and how furiously it roared from within the sea of ​​fire, it could no longer advance an inch.

Everything in sight gradually fell into the control of that invisible hand.

It's too late to struggle anymore.

"All things flourish because of these hands; everything in the world is made up of these ten fingers..."

Jiang Tongguang sighed, gazing at the silvery radiance, then raised his cup and drank it all in one gulp: "Truly worthy of the name 'Non-Aggression'!"

Snapped!
Ji Jue flicked his finger again, and another wisp of silver ripple burst forth from his fingertip, spreading out and freezing the raging counterattack.

Solid Alchemy!
All spiritual reactions and refinements are forcibly sealed off by materiality. The material shackles the spiritual essence, and the body seals off the soul. No matter what kind of messy things you refine, they are all frozen and not allowed to leave.

Then, vapor alchemy begins to extract spiritual matter and strengthen the substance. After all the erosion of spiritual matter is completely drained, fluid alchemy is used to purify and recreate it.

As the three flows accelerated, almost cyclically, everything naturally returned to the state set by Ji Jue.

Rather than repair, it's more like erosion and transformation, taking the places that were infected by the virus and then infecting them again with another virus!
The seemingly violent and ferocious plague tide was no different from a gentle breeze to Ji Jue.

Compared to the raging flames, what is this glowing glow of decaying grass, or the so-called plague?
As for the distorted erosion caused by stagnation and decay.

Ji Jue almost laughed. Putting aside the issue of non-aggression resistance, did he really think that he had attended the Jianyuan training course for nothing? He just didn't use it, not that he didn't know how.

Kengen was indeed a master craftsman, although most of his work was basic. However, there is no doubt that his internal theories directly pointed to the essence of stagnant and decaying embers.

Although the kernel is undeniably stagnant and corrupt, at least in terms of application, it completely spans both paths without any constraints.

Moreover, there is the forced enlightenment and initiation in the form of candlelight, which is enough for Ji Jue's understanding of stagnation and decay to achieve a dimensional reduction attack on the vast majority of profound mediocrity.

This is merely a trial run, a reverse practice of demonic arts. By understanding stagnation and decay, one can break down and deconstruct the opponent. In the art of disintegration, this is the most basic skill among the basics, almost an instinct and a soul reflex.

boom!!!
A hysterical, incoherent voice rang out from the torchlight. The fragmented figure seemed to be in a rage, convulsing, with flames, as if alive, emerging from its face, revealing blurry expressions of resentment, staring intently at Ji Jue.

Perhaps, that is the real plague.

Its essence is what is known as the regret of the craftsmen!

It is not a shallow sense of gratitude, hatred, or love, but rather a greed and aversion stemming from the craftsman's very nature: a hatred that the creation of heaven and earth cannot be possessed exclusively by him, and a hatred that he cannot create all things in the world by himself!

In a sense, the craftsman who was once completely corrupted and materialized by stagnation and decay has finally completed his creation—what he created is the very thing he looks like now!

Even if intelligence is lost, even if the soul is annihilated, this hatred and greed only intensify, without any restraint.

That is why it is so hungry and thirsty, and why it endlessly devours everything, dragging all things and phenomena into chaos.

Now, the hatred of the craftsmen, transformed into a raging plague, has gone completely berserk.

Because his own creation was killed right before his eyes!

It's not about correction or transformation, but about being even more ruthless and cruel, completely strangling this vibrant and thriving world inch by inch!

In his rage, the alchemy process, which had long since become instinct, began once again. Using himself as the furnace and the entire Rift Realm as the raw material, the Burial Ground trembled violently in an instant. Tears and corpse flames flowed, and countless creations were completed in the blink of an eye. Countless clay figures resembling corpses gathered together, swallowing the decaying wind, and transformed into images of gods and Buddhas with ferocious faces, two lines of blood tears flowing from their eyes, and mouths that spewed out dark, fierce light.

Ji Jue waved his hand, and right in front of him, the endless putrid poison was dispersed and torn to shreds.

Immediately afterwards, the skeletal deity raised its hands, and endless blades rose from the fire and fell from the sky like a torrential rain, shattering into pieces as the spiritual swords were wielded.

The gods and Buddhas plucked off their own hands and threw them out. In the void, the hands and arms suddenly transformed, the blood-soaked arms writhing violently, forming three large, black serpents that snaked and pounced towards them.

Ji Jue slightly raised his palm, and the waves in the mercury surged. A sword blade wrapped in blood and black flames rose up, was gripped tightly by the mercury hand, and slashed, cutting the giant snake in half.

In the sky, the tears froze, condensing into pearls, falling from the sky, and then bursting open one after another, from which countless worms crawled out, only to be completely annihilated by the silver light.

"bother."

Ji Jue flicked his finger, and a hand emerged from the boiling mercury, stretching infinitely, clenching into a fist, and slamming down.

A violent shockwave swept outwards, and gods and Buddhas perished without a trace.

Only the cries and maniacal laughter from the torches of plague overlapped endlessly, as if an angry accusation.

"This can hardly be considered a creation; it's just a consumable item that was randomly put together. In other words, this is the extent of the threat you can pose to me."

Ji Jue shook his head, flicked his finger at the wreckage wreathed in raging flames, and easily shattered the fire-forged blade into dust.

"A life of stagnation and decay? Nothing more than that!"

boom!
When Ji Jue raised his finger again, endless silver light gathered, rose from the ground, and extended countless sharp blades that pierced through, ignoring the corrosive effects of the plague, lifting up the mangled body, suspending it, and shackled it.

"The depths of malice are too shallow... merely wishful thinking."

Ji Jue glanced at the charred face and sighed contemptuously:
"The evils of the world are far more than this."

The plague raged and struggled, expanding again and again, yet it could not break through the suppression of solid alchemy.

All that could be heard was that cold, indifferent voice.

"Ideals fall into the abyss, life withers with the years, laws become shackles, freedom breeds slaughter, flames are extinguished by frost and rain, the world collapses and changes fall into a cycle..."

"Among all the evils and difficulties of this world, there is one that I am most skilled at."

Ji Jue raised his finger and gently pointed it at the distorted and broken face: "Look carefully."

He said, "This is the greatest honor of your life."

boom!
Silver light erupted from his fingertips, completely engulfing the remnants of the Torch Plague. Moreover, the surging waves swept and echoed, covering the entire Rift Realm.

It encompasses everything, proclaiming true destruction and end to the stagnant and corrupt work that is overestimating its own capabilities.

It is neither a lie called redemption, nor a depravity mistaken for hope.

Rather, it is eternal, pure nothingness!

Wherever the silver light passed, everything fell into a deathly silence, vanished, the mercury flowed, and endless flowers bloomed, easily taking root in the stagnant and decaying pollution, assimilating everything.

Assimilate, assimilate, assimilate again.

Until the very end, the dazzling silver-white flowers bloomed everywhere, engulfing everything. In the deathly silence, there was no other sound, no embers, no decay, no spiritual matter, no change, and no sinking.

No matter how dazzling and magnificent it may appear, it will still instinctively send chills down your spine. No matter how harmless and gentle it may seem, only when you are actually there can you feel the fear that makes your soul cry out and break.

Everything is now worthless.

Whether it is creation or destruction.

Everything despairingly returns to eternal nothingness, even if the flowers within that nothingness are so dazzling.

Including the plague.

Flowers slowly bloomed from his mangled body, covering his charred and broken form and his face covered with charcoal and cracks.

The resentment and bitterness on that face were hidden, and there was no trace of fear or trembling.

There were no more flames.

"You...you also..."

Her face, swallowed by the profusion of flowers, twitched and spasmed, her broken voice sounding like a sob: "You too...you too...you and me..."

The sound abruptly ceased, and beneath the blooming flowers, the plague was completely annihilated.

Only the final words echoed in the fading silver light.

Contemptuous and indifferent.

"You too?"

Ji Jue waved his hand, and the fleetingly beautiful flowers all withered away, and everything returned to its original position.

Only a broken, empty shell was pulled by the silver light, hanging next to the remains of the cellar worker and the head of the iron valve, making a third one. Unfortunately, it couldn't counteract the effect; instead, it looked even more terrifying and grotesque.

As it sways in the wind, the howling wind sounds like an eternal lament.

"Next!"

Ji Jue remained indifferent, turning his head to look into the deep darkness.

This time, a figure resembling a dwarf emerged from the darkness, approaching him step by step as if facing a formidable enemy, filled with vigilance and caution.

He opened his mouth as if to speak. The next instant, with Ji Jue flicking his finger, the long-accumulated purple lightning and black flames burst forth, the pure light and heat transforming into a destructive torrent that completely engulfed the approaching party.

It was burned to ashes!

The ashes gathered in one place and were casually tossed next to the fragments of the Torch Plague, making a total of four.

"You're utterly pathetic. Don't try to fool me with this piece of trash!"

Ji Jue glanced indifferently into the deep darkness, "Next!"

The next one will last even longer.

It means that it withstood the slashing of Pan Ying's blood and fire storm for a full two seconds before its body was completely destroyed.

Ji Jue used the blade of his sword to pick up a piece of bone that could barely be considered intact and threw it next to the handful of ashes.

Looking into the deep darkness.

"Next!"

Next one, and then the next one...

Like an executioner's block, it welcomed one visitor after another, and then hung up one mutilated corpse after another.

One, two, three, four, five, six...

An extraordinary and bizarre spectacle, unprecedented in the three trials of the Ember's Deepest Abyss over the past four hundred years, gradually unfolded before everyone's eyes.

So much so that in the deathly silence between the sea and the sky, no other sounds could be heard.

Everyone stared wide-eyed at the relentless, almost brutal duel, finding it hard to breathe.

"You won again?"

Inside the Heavenly Pivot, Huang Xu, who had been waiting all this time, rubbed his eyes and let out a soft sigh. He didn't know whether he was tired or relieved. He just felt like his mood was on a roller coaster. He had never worried about anyone else like this before.

Several times, he hesitated, wanting to speak but then stopping himself.

To be honest, even if it were his own son, he wouldn't be this worried. But Ji Jue, you good-for-nothing, you can go around wandering around, but can't you at least return the Siegfried Ring first?

Why don't you come out first?
Let's have a proper talk. You name your price, bro. Please, stop messing around. I'm begging you.

I've never longed for someone to come and chop me with a big knife like this before; I've never wanted to bleed like this before, to be a victim of a great injustice.

He felt incredibly ashamed, yet he was also frantic with worry.

Urgent! So urgent!

"Which game is this?" Egonu asked, turning around.

"This is the eighth game."

Despina answered.

"Hey, you were just an apprentice a little over a year ago, how long has it been? This so-called 'generous embers'... isn't it a bit too generous?"

Egonu sighed, "From now on, we might have to call this kid Master Ji."

"No need for later."

The silent old captain, puffing on his pipe, said, "His master assessment is just a formality; no one will vote against it."

Egonu paused, then nodded in realization, "That's right, first the cellar, then the iron valve, the torch plague..."

"more than."

The old captain shook his head: "Dragon Poison also died at his hands, and there were probably others even before that."

Although Ye Xian was ruthless in his words, he would always leave a way out in his actions. But that kid was different; when he started using underhanded tactics, he never left any room for maneuver.

The fact that you saw one only proves that many more died.

For a moment, the masters of the association fell silent, looking at the thin figure standing at the front. No one spoke, as if they had been lost in thought.

Ji Jue seemed to have drifted off into thought as well.

His posture was relaxed, without any vigilance or precaution, and he didn't care at all where he was.

Just yawning listlessly, waiting.

"Next!"

In that brief, almost imperceptible silence, no one responded.

Inside the Hall of the Deep Shadows, it was already in complete chaos!
"Hui Nao! What are you still doing?"

A shadowy figure loomed over the long table, urging, "The Grandmaster has entrusted you with a great responsibility. If you want to stall for time and make a fool of yourself, then get out of here!"

Immediately, voices of agreement rang out, and those around urged them on.

One beat two, one beat three is one thing, but this is a damn eight beats in a row! How can you still be sitting still?!
What's the rush?

The gaunt man, who looked like an old scholar, adjusted his glasses and smiled nonchalantly: "If you're in a hurry, you can go first, I don't mind..."

If the Grandmaster later feels that I am cowardly in battle and unfit for important tasks, he can explain the situation to me himself.

All the urging voices suddenly fell silent.

Hui Nao had already withdrawn his gaze, looking down at the scroll in his hand. On the ancient sheepskin, lines of writing kept appearing, with intelligence and information from Ji Jue flowing out in great detail.

From his emergence in Jinan, to establishing a foothold on the coast, to expanding into the Central Plains and conquering the Seven Cities, numerous recorded struggles and deductions emerge from the paper, along with the many creations and skills he possesses... Even now, with so many intelligence records gathered together, Ji Jue's photograph on paper has not even been fully compiled; it remains a black and white sketch.

This means that there are still significant gaps in his understanding of Ji Jue!
Too much trouble.

But it was still within expectations.

After all, the most troublesome ones are not the masters, but rather the relatively unknown 'nobodies' who were previously not well-known. The struggle between craftsmen is a struggle of creation. Although it ultimately comes down to skill, more often than not, the outcome is determined by intelligence.

These rising genius craftsmen are too troublesome, just like Ye Xian back then.

It's clear that Ji Jue is currently in the golden age of his career as a craftsman, where his skills are improving rapidly and noticeably. He's completely different now, changing every day, and could be drastically different in just three to five months.

It's like an unknown black box, a bottomless pit.

I've learned too much, know too much, and kept too much hidden.

Often, you think you've reached his limit after exhausting all your efforts, only to hear a chuckle in response: "You didn't expect that, did you? I still have an inch of depth to go!"
It's just too troublesome to target them.

To deal with such a fine and outstanding talent, one who could be personally chosen by the Supreme Ruler, we cannot allow the opponent to exert any strength or grow. We must completely suppress them in terms of level and stats.

But who the hell doesn't know that!

Hui Nao was also bitter. He was assigned this task of deploying troops by Anvil. It seemed like he had great power, but in reality, compared with the real high-ranking officials in You Suo, he was just a nobody on the sidelines, someone to offend people.

It's the same in any workshop: the teachers reap the benefits while the apprentices do the work.

How many of those truly veteran demons of calamity, those powerful figures who can easily overpower ordinary masters, are there in You Shen?

Moreover, almost all of them were directly under the three grandmasters. There were a few exceptions, but they were all disobedient and could only be bribed or exchanged for something. They were not under his command at all!
This order was worthless from the very beginning.

Iron Valve, Gongjiao, and Torch Plague are the strongest cards in his hand. The stronger ones were either swapped out by the association in the previous rounds or were unwilling to play until they were fully assessed.

Without the direct order from the old man, no one wanted to take that risk.

If it weren't for the inappropriate setting and his position, he would have flipped the table and been cursing: "How are we supposed to win these rounds?! Tell me, how are we supposed to win?!"

Fortunately, even at the very end, there is still one solution that is not a solution.

Even if it's not exactly aboveboard, who cares?

As long as it works and is effective!
He turned around, looked at the disciple behind him, and told him:

"Motu, go."

The craftsman known as Motu was stunned. His expression twitched, and he hesitated, wanting to explain and plead, but his expectant gaze remained silent.

In that instant, he finally understood his role.

But he had no choice.

So, the pale-faced craftsman, suppressing his trembling, walked step by step toward the rift.

And so, she stood before Ji Jue.

This caused Ji Jue to fall silent as well.

weak.

Too weak, so weak that Ji Jue couldn't stand it.

Does the Yousui region not even have any masters anymore? Why are they letting these scraps take the stage?
But Ji Jue didn't even have time to speak.

Right in front of Ji Jue, Mo Tu's expression twitched again, and he gave a bitter smile.

Then... it exploded.

boom!!!
(End of this chapter)