On the border of the Great Chu, where it met the Great Ming Dynasty, the mountains and earth bore countless gruesome scars.
Vast swathes of trees were either snapped in half or uprooted entirely. If Fan Li hadn't witnessed it firsthand, he would have believed a natural disaster had struck, rather than a battle fought by men.
A massive boulder had been cleanly sliced in two. The cut surface was as smooth as a mirror. But who could have imagined that this boulder, several yards in diameter, had been split open by a small dagger.
A man sat slumped against the rock face, riddled with countless wounds. Blood flowed, then the wounds clotted, then tore open again, more blood flowing, then clotting once more – a gruesome cycle.
The man was gravely injured and his limbs severed. Yet, he was still alive. He even looked at Fan Li with a calm gaze.
"Duke Jin…"
The man spoke slowly, and Fan Li assumed he was begging for mercy. After all, pleading for his life was this man's style.
"I know… I deserve to die."
Fan Li remained silent. He walked forward, stopping just two meters from the man. His Dantian and Qi Sea were shattered, his limbs severed. This man was completely crippled. He couldn't possibly harm Fan Li.
"Lu Bu. Do you regret it?"
Even as he asked the question, Fan Li felt a twinge of childishness.
Lu Bu had betrayed him. Wasn't that only natural? Why even bother asking?
But he had still asked, and he even felt a flicker of anticipation for Lu Bu's answer.
Fan Li had once fantasized, as a transmigrator, about subduing Lu Bu, about a harmonious relationship between ruler and subject, a bond that would last until death.
Perhaps, if Lu Bu hadn't betrayed him, Fan Li might have even appointed him as Grand Marshal of the Great Jin army?
This man might have lacked strategic talent, but his combat prowess was undeniable.
What a pity.
"I was willing to do anything for her… I don't regret it…" Blood oozed from the corner of his lips as he spoke.
"Where is Diao Chan?" Fan Li asked.
The Great Ci Dynasty had held a state funeral for Diao Chan. Fan Li had received the news, but he was suspicious.
How could someone die so suddenly?
The war between Wei, Han, Wu, and the Great Ming Dynasty hadn't even reached the Great Ci Dynasty. They hadn't lost a single soldier. Moreover, Fan Li had learned that Diao Chan had been buried with an empty coffin.
"Hehe…"
Lu Bu didn't answer Fan Li's question. Instead, he asked one of his own.
"Duke Jin, do you know what the Sage Ruler of Fate truly is?"
Fan Li shook his head. He had been curious and had even asked Qing Qiu, but she had refused to answer, citing the Pure Land's laws.
"The Brahma Sound Pure Land has no inheritance for the Sage Ruler of Fate."
"What?"
What did that even mean?
If there was no inheritance, where did the successive Sage Rulers of Fate come from?
However, Lu Bu's next words seemed to shift the topic once more.
"Diao Chan's cultivation technique is called the 'Grand Destiny Arts.' This technique can alter fate. It can deceive Heaven."
Such arrogance!
That was Fan Li's first reaction.
"Duke Jin, do you remember the 'Devouring Demon Arts'?" Lu Bu asked.
Fan Li nodded. Of course he remembered. Dong Zhuo, relying on the Devouring Demon Arts, had gained immense power, almost overthrowing the dynasty!
"What does the Devouring Demon Arts have to do with the Grand Destiny Arts?" Fan Li asked. "Could it be that Diao Chan also cultivated the Devouring Demon Arts?"
Hearing this, Lu Bu burst into laughter. He coughed blood as he laughed, but he couldn't stop.
"Cough, hahahahaha, cough, cough!"
"The Devouring Demon Arts is nothing!"
"It's just a minor technique Dong Zhuo developed after having Diao Chan research the remains of past Han emperors, hoping to comprehend their destiny and alter his own."
Fan Li was surprised but maintained a neutral expression. "Even the Devouring Demon Arts is just a minor technique? Diao Chan is truly impressive."
Lu Bu didn't respond. He continued speaking as if to himself. "Diao Chan's true achievement was to… comprehend the true art of deceiving Heaven and altering fate, using the Han emperors' destiny as a foundation!"
"The Grand Destiny Arts can alter all destinies. Except… the Emperor's destiny. However, excavating imperial tombs, researching the remains of emperors – these are things no one has dared to do throughout history."
"Dong Zhuo did it for Diao Chan. The Grand Destiny Arts was finally perfected. Even the Emperor's destiny can be altered."
As he spoke, a hint of pride flickered in Lu Bu's eyes.
Fan Li listened patiently until he finished, then asked, "Diao Chan altered Yao Guang's destiny, didn't she?"
Lu Bu looked at Fan Li with admiration.
"Yao Guang… finally achieved her goal. She now possesses the true Emperor's destiny."
Fan Li was stunned. Even though he had already guessed the answer, he was still shocked!
"Now, can you answer my previous question?" Fan Li repeated. "Where is Diao Chan?"
Fan Li possessed the Emperor's destiny himself. He didn't covet Diao Chan's Grand Destiny Arts. But he was genuinely curious.
He had only met Diao Chan briefly at Dong Zhuo's residence. He hadn't expected her to be such an extraordinary woman!
"Duke Jin."
"Yes?"
Lu Bu still refused to answer. Was he changing the subject again?
"If I entrust this child to you, will you kill her or raise her?"
Lu Bu somehow managed to shift his body slightly even though his limbs were severed. He had been using himself as a shield to protect the baby girl behind him?
The infant slept soundly, as if Lu Bu's back was incredibly warm?
"You have a blood feud with me, but I don't punish the innocent, especially not a child. If you entrust this child to me, I promise to find someone trustworthy to raise her. She'll live a comfortable life, free from worries."
Fan Li finished speaking and looked at Lu Bu with a neutral expression. He didn't care whether Lu Bu believed him.
Lu Bu shook his head.
"Please, Duke Jin, raise her yourself. Otherwise… kill her."
Fan Li sensed something amiss. "Who is this child?!" he blurted out.
Strange!
Incredibly strange!
Fan Li believed his offer was reasonable. If Lu Bu cared for the child, why would he refuse, even preferring to kill her himself?
At this moment, Fan Li finally realized that something was wrong with this child!
"She… is Diao Chan."
Lu Bu's answer shocked Fan Li!
"Altering Yao Guang's destiny… The price is the life of the Grand Destiny Arts practitioner. But the Grand Destiny Arts, as the Pure Land's secret technique, is also known as the 'Immortal Technique.' Those who cultivate this technique… can live forever."
Fan Li shook his head repeatedly.
Was Lu Bu speaking nonsense before his death?
Unless one ascended to the Immortal Realm, how could there be an immortal technique in the mortal world?
If such a technique existed, ascending to the Immortal Realm wouldn't be so appealing.
Fan Li chuckled. "The Pure Land has such a powerful technique, why wouldn't everyone cultivate it? Why wouldn't everyone live forever?"
He couldn't help but glance at the baby girl. If he had to say, this little one did resemble Diao Chan. She was born with a captivating charm. Her features suggested she would grow into a great beauty.
"No one would willingly cultivate such a technique." Lu Bu's gaze turned cold with a hint of mockery. "Those who cultivate the Grand Destiny Arts have a lifespan of at most one hundred years. If they die within a hundred years, they are reborn as an infant. Once they begin cultivating, for all eternity, they can only cultivate this one technique. Altering destinies for others, deceiving Heaven for others. But they themselves are weak and frail, unable to live long, let alone ascend to immortality!"
Lu Bu suddenly became angry.
"Duke Jin! The Grand Destiny Arts is a harmful technique! Diao Chan has struggled through countless reincarnations, countless times re-cultivating, only to create an Empress Yao Guang! She has always lived for others!"
"…Duke Jin, I beg you, let Diao Chan live for herself this time…"