Chapter 98: Protagonist of Destiny

Heavenly Crossing River.

Massive waves and rolling currents crashed against the banks, churning up a thick mist over the water. It was flood season, and the rushing river surged with the momentum of a Flood Dragon.

Yet upon this mighty river floated a small flatboat, five zhang long and wide, gliding across the treacherous waters as smoothly as if it were on solid ground. The turbulent waves parted wherever it passed, and even the most violent currents immediately calmed. Everything felt entirely natural, with no trace of external force at play.

Looking out over the water.

An unrestrained young man lay on his back on the deck, a jug of cloudy wine in his hand. He drank deeply and without pause, his gaze fixed on the night sky above.

Countless stars dotted the heavens, spanning the void like a celestial river.

"So beautiful."

The young man sighed in heartfelt admiration. He possessed a handsome face and an otherworldly temperament. Though he looked every bit the wild, drunken scholar, he was not the least bit repulsive; instead, the demeanor added an air of heroic boldness.

However, right at that moment.

Following the young man's gaze, a streak of light suddenly tore away from the bright starry river. It wavered in the air, plummeting straight toward the Heavenly Crossing River.

"Hmm?"

The young man was greatly startled, his drunken haze instantly halving. He focused his eyes and realized that within the falling streak of light was a woman as beautiful as a heavenly fairy.

"Could it be a fairy descending to the mortal realm?"

Amid his shock, a restless excitement stirred within him. He hailed from a wealthy family in Changle Commandery, and since childhood, he had devoured countless tales of martial artists and immortals.

"Legend has it that Shuzhong is the birthplace of sword immortals. If you're lucky, you can even spot them riding their swords through the clouds while out on a spring outing. Anyone who can fly through the sky definitely isn't a martial artist; they have to be an immortal! No wonder I felt a sudden whim to come out boating today..."

The young man had always enjoyed exceptional luck.

From childhood to adulthood, whatever he wanted, he obtained. Whatever he set out to do, he accomplished. He had never suffered the slightest setback.

It seemed this time would be no different.

His mind quickly raced with possibilities.

"I don't know why, but this fairy sister is clearly injured. If I can save her, maybe I can become an immortal too?"

With that thought, he quickly steered his flatboat toward where the light was falling.

And as his intent stirred, the previously chaotic currents of the Heavenly Crossing River shifted. The water flowed in perfect unison, pushing his small boat swiftly toward the target.

Splash!

The light plunged directly into the river just as the young man arrived. He immediately dove from the boat, braving the fierce winds and violent waves to drag her out of the water.

He drew in a sharp breath.

After hauling the fairy sister onto the deck, the young man had just breathed a sigh of relief when his face suddenly flushed bright red. He hurriedly averted his eyes, not daring to look any closer.

Having just plunged into the river, the fairy sister's robes were completely soaked. The wet fabric clung tightly to her voluptuous curves, revealing the inner linings and highlighting the swell of her chest. Her stunning, heroic features were softened by her injuries, and this striking contrast stirred a powerful itch in his heart.

"look not at what is contrary to propriety, look not at what is contrary to propriety..."

Muttering to himself, the young man took off his heavy cloak and prepared to drape it over her. But the moment he moved, he realized something was wrong.

"Her body is so hot..."

The young man furrowed his brow. Even though this unconscious fairy sister had just been soaking in the river, her skin was burning like fire, and her very breath was scalding.

Right at that moment.

"Mmm..."

Chen Luoyan opened her eyes, regaining a sliver of consciousness. She subconsciously glanced around. "Is my... spiritual sense exhausted? Did I make it out of Longxing County?"

Before she could process her current situation, an intense burning sensation surged from her lower abdomen into her limbs and bones. Her pale face flushed a vibrant, alluring red, and her recently cleared eyes clouded with a hazy luster. Instinctively, she sought out the nearest source of bodily warmth.

"Fairy sister?"

The young man blinked at the sight, masking his excitement. "My surname is Ye. You can call me Ye Chao, sister. Your body is incredibly hot. Have you been poisoned?"

Poisoned?

Chen Luoyan struggled to rally her senses, her beautiful face shifting drastically. It's that evil cultivator's lust poison! My spiritual sense was tainted by it—no wonder my strength gave out so quickly...

At that realization, a sudden wave of terror gripped her.

That lust poison was infamous even within the Myriad Demons Cave, causing the female cultivators of the Fangxian Dao to pale at its very mention. It could only be cured through the union of yin and yang.

You've got to be kidding me!

Having entered Book Mountain to cultivate since childhood, Chen Luoyan had always maintained an immaculate purity. She treated others with icy detachment and had already pledged her life to the Immortal Dao. How could she possibly give herself to a man?

Furthermore, she possessed a uniquely rare constitution: the Furnace Physique. The moment she lost her purity in dual cultivation with a man, half of her lifelong cultivation base would be transferred to him. She had poured immense effort into finally mastering the Cosmic Orbit Respiration. If her purity was taken, her cultivation would instantly regress.

And all that effort would directly benefit whatever man claimed her.

Because the other party would inherit half of her cultivation, even a mortal with absolutely no prior foundation would likely forge a Flawless True Body right on the spot!

What is this absurdity?

Naturally, Chen Luoyan was a hundred times unwilling. But as time ticked by, the raging fire incinerating her limbs and bones only grew more intense.

Her mind was rapidly burning into a delirious haze.

Under these circumstances, the young man right in front of her—Ye Chao—naturally became her prime choice... And looking closely, he was rather handsome. She didn't find him repulsive.

Desperate times called for desperate measures. Losing half her cultivation base was still better than dying, right?

"Fairy sister? Fairy sister?"

Watching Chen Luoyan's current seductive state, Ye Chao couldn't help but gulp. This scene was far too similar to his midnight fantasies.

Could it be... he had a chance?

At that thought, he couldn't resist gently nudging Chen Luoyan's shoulder. That brief brush of skin completely shattered the last vestiges of her blurred consciousness.

In the very next second, Chen Luoyan reached out.

Ye Chao secretly rejoiced at the sight, but he hastily plastered a look of panic and resistance on his face. "Fairy sister, what are you doing? Please, don't, I'm not that kind of man..."

Boom!

A deafening explosion shattered Ye Chao's words and forcefully interrupted Chen Luoyan's advance. The entire flatboat shook violently, nearly capsizing on the spot.

A figure had suddenly appeared on the banks of the Heavenly Crossing River. He charged directly across the waves, completely unhindered by the churning currents trying to hold him back. He crossed a distance of hundreds of zhang before crashing heavily onto Ye Chao's boat, nearly driving the entire vessel down into the river.

"Who's there?!"

Ye Chao was frightened out of his wits. He stared at the figure who had smashed into the boat, finding a heroic, blade-bearing young man who was now looking right back at him.

It's... this guy?

Wang Ping's gaze burned like a torch. Employing his spiritual sense and Divine Intent simultaneously, he swept Ye Chao inside and out. An Internal Force Martial Master. He's never cultivated the immortal path, but he possesses a spiritual root...

Suddenly, Wang Ping's expression shifted.

Radiant with vibrant colors, crystal-clear to the spiritual sense.

Is this... a true spiritual root?

He had seen his fair share of spiritual roots by now, but the vast majority were defective spiritual roots. Those people were doomed to squander their entire lives trapped in the Tribulation Transcending Stage.

This was his very first time encountering a legendary true spiritual root. In the Immortal Gate, only cultivators possessing a true spiritual root had the foundational qualifications to enter the Dao through Qi Refining. For true transmission disciples like Daoist Nun You and Lian Shengyue, a true spiritual root was a strict prerequisite. Its sheer value went without saying.

Yet he never expected this.

To think I'd stumble across a true spiritual root within the Great Shun dynasty. If this kid had been born in the Immortal Gate, he would have started as an inner sect disciple right away, with a genuine shot at becoming a True Transmission!

Unbelievable!

Could a mere pond really give birth to a True Dragon?

While Wang Ping was entranced by the spiritual root, Ye Chao was equally captivated, sensing that this uninvited guest radiated an unbelievably immense blood vitality.

Just standing there, the man felt like a massive roaring furnace, dispelling every chill in the air. From a man's perspective, if this stranger was hundred-tempered steel, Ye Chao was nothing but soft iron. This was the unique oppressive force of the martial path—a crushing aura stemming from a higher echelon of life following a qualitative change in the physical body.

The magnetic attraction this produced was worlds apart.

"Ah..."

With a sultry pant, the fully burning Chen Luoyan didn't hesitate for a second. She immediately changed targets, discarding Ye Chao and lunging straight for Wang Ping.

Wang Ping frowned at her advance. "Miss Chen, please conduct yourself with dignity."

But Chen Luoyan turned a deaf ear to his warning.

In the blink of an eye, she had already climbed onto Wang Ping's body. Her long, pale legs locked tightly around him while her hands frantically tore at his clothes.

Ye Chao watched the scene, his eyes practically splitting at the seams with envy.

However, he quickly heard a sharp smack! Wang Ping raised his hand without a sliver of hesitation and viciously slapped her across the face.

Followed by a heavy thud, Chen Luoyan—bearing a bright red handprint on her beautiful cheek—fainted on the spot and collapsed to the deck like a dead dog.

Ye Chao: "???"

Wang Ping didn't care in the slightest. He casually tossed Chen Luoyan over his shoulder and turned back to Ye Chao. "You, come with me," he said flatly.

"What do you want?"

Ye Chao took a subconscious step back, his guard raised. "I am a legitimate son of the Ye Family in Changle Commandery. I hold an official post in the commandery office. If you kidnap me, you'll be a wanted man..."

With that, he quickly whipped out his official seal as a commandery registrar.

In the very next second, an even larger official seal was smashed right into his face. "I am an imperial Brocade Guard, acting with the Emperor's authority. Be a good boy and come with me."

Ye Chao froze.

An imperial Brocade Guard?

He had heard about this. Supposedly, one of them had indeed come to Longxing County within the commandery, but ended up rebelling, leading the black-headed commoners to break open the granaries. Now, he had become a rebel king...

Oh no!

With that realization, how could Ye Chao fail to recognize the newly minted rank six of the Armament Manual, the world-renowned outlaw hero standing before him? He immediately leapt into the air.

His mind was quite clear. Winning a fight was impossible—his pitiful martial arts were less than nothing in front of the Armament Manual's sixth rank. His only option was to jump into the river and flee. Fortunately, he was a strong swimmer and possessed great luck. As long as the Heavenly Crossing River was on his side, he just might escape with his life...

"Hmph, trying to run?"

Almost simultaneously, Wang Ping reached out. His speed vastly outstripped Ye Chao's. He closed the distance instantly, preparing to snatch the young man before he could hit the water.

But right at that moment.

"Where did this evil cultivator come from, daring to harm a Mortal?"

Suddenly, accompanied by a sharp shout, a sword light swooped down from the clouds like a dragon. It slashed straight for Wang Ping's neck, forcefully blocking his attempt to capture Ye Chao.

Splash!

Ye Chao successfully hit the water, rapidly vanishing beneath the rolling waves.

Wang Ping narrowed his eyes at the sight. He looked up at his sudden attacker and found a wild-looking Daoist priest holding a wine gourd.

...I was right.

At that moment, Wang Ping was one hundred percent certain: the young man who had just escaped was the protagonist of this grand play orchestrated by Book Mountain, and the source of all these events.

Because just a second ago, he had caught a familiar aura.

The sudden arrival of a helper, the surging river waters—timing, terrain, and human intervention had all tilted entirely in Ye Chao's favor in that single instant.

That was the only reason he had managed a lucky escape.

The grand current of destiny had been stirred at that exact moment. As someone who had experienced it firsthand, Wang Ping was all too familiar with the sensation and immediately recognized it.

It's the Fate-Peering Bone-Slicing Mirror!

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