The nominally existent but effectively defunct Bronze Kingdom.

Demon calamity is rampant, with cultivators everywhere engaged in man-eating and slaughter.

A school has turned into a shelter, protecting ordinary humans amidst the disaster, where the elderly principal is playing chess with Professor Zeng Ciwen.

"Are you really going?" The old man seemed to see through his thoughts.

"Yes, I must go," Professor Zeng Ciwen said.

"You've already grasped the patterns of history, but why do you still wish to court death?"

The old man, with a calm expression, suddenly diverted the topic: "You know, this kind of catastrophe, it's the second one I've experienced."

He paused, his voice incredibly serene, like a spectator from ancient times,

"Seven hundred years ago, when I saw that group of marauders, I knew what was bound to happen, but I did not intervene because I knew I couldn't stop it. An individual cannot halt the tide of destiny... just as you, now, cannot prevent the eruption of this era of catastrophes. The world will reshuffle."

"I understand, yet I still want to go."

He chuckled, placing a chess piece, saying, "I've lived a fulfilled life, mended the regrets, and there's nothing worth lingering on. Besides, a few years ago, when I quietly entered Hundred-Stone City, and was near my obstinate student, I saw the flower that belonged to me — I'm going to die."

The old man was stunned and couldn't help but sigh, "It is precisely because you must go, that you will die... you have hidden for so long, indifferent to worldly affairs, why expose yourself now, instead of continuing to hide?"

"Perhaps, perhaps going will lead to death, or maybe even if I don't go, I'll still die, either way, the flower is there — I'm going to die."

Zeng Ciwen sighed, "So I choose to follow my heart, and go see..."

The old man remained silent.

Zeng Ciwen continued, "These years, within, I've gained increasingly profound clarity, understood many things that were once bewildering; I increasingly sense a force of destiny."

"And all our actions today will not be futile."

He pointed to the pond below,

"The world is like a pond, destiny like the water within it, and we, as fish, must leave the water, leap out of the pond, leap out of destiny, to see the world outside."

"Breaking free from destiny's bondage must occur at a certain stage of life; I believe such a civilization can start leaving the world, stepping into the ranks of world-class civilizations. We are paving the way for future generations, at the very least, allowing the world to see what destiny truly is."

"We ancient beings are also filled with shame."

This old man gently gazed at the tearful statue of the deity, smiling, "We didn't heed the gods' advice, but instead walked an identical path of destruction."

"Yet history will ultimately remember this great moment, when in the distant future, advanced civilizations emerge to walk out into the world, seeing the endless, radiant stars, they will document our sacrifice — we too once struggled in this world."

He donned his cloak, turned around, and left,

"I too have seen another destined historical fate, to let the fish in this world leap out of the water, to break free from shackles, past destroyed civilizations have offered up generations of blood!"

...

...

Tree of Life, in the midst of a hazy rain.

Du Jingsheng and several surviving elders returned, looking at the deity statue in front of the Tree of Life.

Du Jingsheng was wrapped in qi, shielding against the rain, sneering, "Do you have no trace of bloodlust?"

The other elders hesitated to speak.

Yet Du Jingsheng laughed, "Very well, very good, your cowardice lacking bloodlust is exactly what I wish to see! You... flee!"

He pointed at the statue, infinitely devout and respectful: "The old deities, brought us, the last sparks, awakening from the old days! Yet having once been destroyed, we still chose that foolish path!" "We are foolish."

"We are laughable."

"We are stubborn."

He gazed at this statue of the deity with tear marks, as rainwater splashed, the bronze man seemingly in slow tears.

Tears fell from the deity, as if mourning present descendants who awoke from the ancient shelters of old days, yet still didn't heed advice, choosing the repeated path of demise, defying the heavens.

He turned to the two remaining elders, "Go on, carry with you the shame, carry with you our techniques, to survive, to hide, letting the world remember us, the traces of these ancient high elves existing."

"While I... will go."

He laughed, "To see the beast that betrayed our race, destroyed our civilization... of course, I'm not helping him; instead, I will kill him, since dying at the hands of fate, might as well, die at the hands of my own kind."

"He destroyed my kingdom, so he can only die by my blade."

Unable to hold back, he laughed heartily, revealing a fierce demeanor, yet completely unaware that tears were already streaming down his face, "This is my final piece of stubbornness and defiance against destiny."

...

...

Beyond the world.

Zhu Zhengwei observed this, couldn't help but shake his head, sighing, "Back in the day, Emperor Shigangzhizheng Chong Dao, he was severely obsessive-compulsive, pursuing ultimate perfectionism."

"Such perfectionism had him complete saintly writings, but also has him candidly record even the evil skills, the age-consuming demon race, all within his synopsis... now, as expected, there's trouble; someone has already figured out the cultivation method."

Before, the dynasty controlled the 'Immortal Pool', registering all cultivators in the world, with official positions naturally testing character for cultivation, so no one cultivated.

But in the current situation?

The dynasty does not control the Immortal Herb, which is held by various forces among the people, even evil wrongdoers have the opportunity to cultivate, evildoers take the chance to train in demonic methods, which now seems natural.

Space fluctuated, Zhu Zhengwei gently landed, stepping into the warm dry sand, leaving footprints one by one.

"Destiny is fundamentally right there."

Zhu Zhengwei shook his head, gazing at the blood-red horizon.

"This so-called destiny is not anything mysterious."

"It's like an online game calculating its NPC's destiny."

"It's like a computer computing the next dozen moves of a pawn."

"You don't know it won't change destiny, still dying that year... You know it doesn't change, still dying that year."

"Indeed, it is due to your knowledge that you face resistance thus speeding up a predetermined demise; no matter how hard you try, you cannot escape the shackles of destiny."

Zhu Zhengwei stood by the forked road in the desert, under the blazing sun, lightly extending his hand, calmly saying, "You chose the destiny of death, not destiny choosing your death."

This is fundamentally a philosophical question.

Indeed, it is precisely because Emperor Shiguang Blood Concealment witnessed destiny that led to the direction Zhu Zhengwei desired, fulfilling his significant mission for the world, using his life, on this 'Day of Destiny', becoming the 'beginning' of opening a great era... reforming himself into Tang Monk flesh, not being divvied up was indeed strange.

"Perhaps, I should avoid casually revealing my divine blood to prevent the sentient beings in this world from seeing the destiny on the river of time, unwittingly increasing their sorrow."

His expression was not calm, looking into the distance,

"If I'm not mistaken, the waning demon assault, the struggle of myriad races, the earth's turmoil, the second great catastrophe era is here... the old Stone-Light Country must become the dusty relics of history."

The era's Day of Destiny, the battle has started.

Zhu Zhengwei gazed at the desert, that ancient Desert Royal City established over seven hundred years ago, and the innumerable demonic qi powerhouses besieging below, feeling somewhat emotional; in the blink of an eye, over four hundred years had passed.

He seemingly glimpsed that day within the tea house, once the Hundred-Stone Country's Emperor Chong Dao, his bold and adamant refusal to become a slave, made Zhu Zhengwei, a mere traveler, unable to suppress a gentle sigh, "Oh, here it still stands — a Human Emperor unwilling to become a slave, determined to rebel."

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