Chapter 866: The True Goal

Chapter 866: Chapter 866: The True Goal

"You said your plan was flawless, that the hiding place was beyond reproach. I believed you."

"And then the ’Two Realms’ object in Southern Zhanbu Continent got snatched. Bai Xuanling did it, with Tianyan Sect in support — precise action, massive force. If you told me there was a mole, I’d believe that too."

"You said abandoning the Evil Spirit Sect was meant to tie down Chu Xingchen, stir up public opinion against him, and set the stage for the future. I believed that too."

"But what happened now? After months of stalemate, Yunmeng Pavilion didn’t stall the way you predicted. They went straight to purging the entire Evil Spirit Sect. Our Mahayana deputy leader got his skull pierced by a Tribulation Transcendence cultivator on the spot."

"Well, sure — you gave Ling Long, an elder Celestial Demon, away to Chu Xingchen for free. What’s a Mahayana deputy leader worth, right?"

"I understand that great factions are hard to control to the letter. But Li Junzi in Southern Zhanbu Continent — you know who that is, right?"

"Dissolved Xuanwu Kingdom’s national fortune, blessed the kingdom’s scholars and martial artists in office."

"If Li Junzi pulls this off, I’d say a mortal Sub-Sage isn’t far off."

"When that happens, what public opinion are you going to use to argue against a Sub-Sage?"

"All this time, I don’t know if Chu Xingchen has taken any damage, but it looks like he’s about to become truly invincible."

Eastern Divine Continent. Lotus Pool.

Zhong Su stared at Boluo with profound distrust. The dissatisfaction in his voice was unmistakable:

"Every single thing you said, you said with absolute confidence. But after all this — what has actually worked? What reason do we have to trust you?"

"Pretty words. They mean nothing to me."

Mei Yu’s clone sat nearby as well, watching Boluo with a calm gaze as he sipped tea brewed from lotus blossoms.

Boluo’s expression remained placid. He showed no reaction to the accusations. He set down his teacup and answered with a light laugh:

"Confidence is a necessity when taking action. I wouldn’t waste my effort on something I didn’t believe could be done."

"You two... people say cultivation defies heaven, and only after enduring ten thousand tribulations of life can one become a true immortal."

"Of course that’s a joke. Those who ascended here — even if not tens of thousands, there are thousands."

"Defying heaven — it’s never that simple."

"But we’re different. What we’re doing is truly defying heaven. For all eternity... whether we’re the first to try, I can’t even say."

"We’ve burned our lives here not because this is guaranteed to succeed, not because it will go smoothly, but because we saw the faintest sliver of possibility."

"The Heavenly Dao’s dread is real. The world’s fortune is real."

"If we just banked on luck being on our side, gambling on everything — I believe we wouldn’t win even once."

"All I intend to do is fight. Fight for every possible chance."

"After all, when everything looked perfectly in order before, it still ended with one last empty basket."

"The thing we’re trying to do is extraordinarily difficult. Failure is the norm."

Boluo finished speaking and turned his calm gaze toward Mei Yu’s clone:

"If you ask me what I think about all this, all I can say is I’ll keep cleaning up the mess, keep pushing forward with what I need to do. I won’t doubt myself because of a single failure."

"After all, if what I’m doing truly made no sense at all, why would either of you ever have believed me?"

Zhong Su’s gaze shifted to Mei Yu, who had said nothing.

Mei Yu was silent for a moment, then raised her eyes and spoke in an icy tone:

"Should we deal with Li Junzi first? Her actions have carved a new path. If she succeeds, she’ll absolutely qualify as a Sub-Sage."

"Martial artists and cultivators alike are usually limited by aptitude. But this path of national fortune and blessing completely upsets that balance."

"The more one serves the people’s welfare and the higher one’s rank, the greater the national fortune’s blessing."

"Previously, great scholars needed years of bitter study, and those who hadn’t achieved that status rarely entered the court. But with this new path open, scholars across the world entering the court to study will become the trend."

"Scholars in office, bound to the kingdom by fortune’s blessing, will naturally strive to strengthen the kingdom in order to receive greater blessing."

"The monarch distributes fortune to the people, and the people support the monarch in return for their welfare."

"I fear the mortal world will undergo a dramatic transformation soon — a hundred flowers blooming. It will no longer be just cultivators shining alone."

"Whether it’s Li Junzi’s path or the title of Sub-Sage, she’s become far too conspicuous."

"Before — whether it was you or I — we both underestimated Li Junzi."

Zhong Su’s expression darkened upon hearing this. He sat down, crossing his legs with an air of impatience that he made no effort to hide.

Mei Yu’s words had already signaled her choice to continue trusting Boluo.

People who wavered and agonized over every decision were always the easiest to move with what sounded like heartfelt sincerity.

Reason sounds compelling from any mouth — even excuses are delivered as though they make perfect sense.

For Zhong Su, only facts were the true measure of everything.

Boluo smiled faintly and looked toward Zhong Su, though his words were directed at Mei Yu:

"Li Junzi’s Sub-Sage potential is already evident, and her connection to Chu Xingchen is plain for anyone to see. The value is obvious."

"I’m certain a Tribulation Transcendence cultivator is already watching over her in secret. If we don’t go ourselves, we can’t succeed — but if we do go, we might not come back."

"The Sub-Sage is heaven-endowed, but in the end she is still a part of the Heavenly Dao. We’ll have to face that regardless."

"Moreover, a Sub-Sage’s power is in reputation, not force. Our reputations are already in ruins — what use is worrying about a Sub-Sage?"

Zhong Su raised his eyes and asked coldly:

"So we just let it all go? Let Bai Xuanling take the ’Two Realms’? Let Li Junzi become a Sub-Sage? Let Chu Xingchen stay high above us all?"

"Yunmeng Pavilion has lost its nerve. Li Junzi’s Sub-Sage ascension is imminent. Your whole public opinion scheme is going to die before it’s born."

Boluo sighed lightly, a trace of worry crossing his face:

"Exactly so. The Heavenly Dao’s fortune truly wants me dead. Nothing works, nothing goes right."

"And there’s worse news I haven’t told you yet. The Wish Power Lines I’ve been holding are being investigated by someone named Lizhi under Chu Xingchen."

"This Lizhi is slow-witted and can’t figure anything out, but she’s an absolute nuisance — wasting an incalculable amount of wish-power in the process."

"More than Li Junzi, I’d rather just deal with Lizhi."

Zhong Su sneered, his words blunt and cutting:

"Then you should have died at sea back then, and let Ling Long hold things together."

Boluo’s gaze drifted slowly toward Zhong Su:

"I understand. You’re dissatisfied with everything I’ve done today. You think I’m either incompetent or that I’ve truly become a double agent trying to get you killed."

Zhong Su neither confirmed nor denied. He simply sneered again.

"You don’t trust me, but I trust you," Boluo said gently. "So — based on what you think, what should we do now?"

Zhong Su’s gaze flickered toward Mei Yu, burning hot as flame.

Mei Yu lowered her eyes slightly, noticing the stare but saying nothing.

Boluo stood and addressed Zhong Su:

"Some things didn’t pan out, but that doesn’t mean they were useless."

"At least we’ve learned what we can fight for and what we can’t."

"The Evil Spirit Sect and Yunmeng Pavilion in Northern Julu Continent bought us time, and Chu Xingchen is stuck in Eastern Divine Continent because of the rumors and Xiaoyun Hall’s stance."

"Things didn’t work out — true. But these are still of great use."

"I’m prepared. Even if the ’Two Realms’ is given away for free, it matters little."

"I understand you feel humiliated and aggrieved — but have I not felt the same?"

"My preparations are complete. Anything more is just icing on the cake. So I’ll entrust you with just one matter."

"If it succeeds, we can march on Chu Xingchen tomorrow."

Zhong Su asked coldly: "What matter?"

Boluo’s smile remained warm:

"I’ve found Heng Wang, the Celestial Demon. He’s willing to act alongside me. All that’s left is Yuan Qiong. He refuses to come, and nothing can proceed without him."

"He trusts you most. I won’t ask why."

"You just need to persuade him."

"Of course — persuasion won’t be entirely your burden."

Boluo produced a sheet of black parchment radiating origin power and set it gently on the table:

"This is the Celestial Demon Joint Declaration. If you’re willing to sign, inject your origin power. If not, simply take it with you as a persuasion tool."

Zhong Su reached out and took it, his eyes scanning the contents. He let out a cold laugh.

On this black parchment, every name was present — except his own and Ling Long’s.

Even Bai Bo, who had only just ascended, had signed.

Today... Boluo’s true target had been him all along.