The tension in the air was thick, pressing against Lin Feng and his companions like an invisible shroud. Bai Xuemin, the son of destiny, stood frozen, eyes wide with shock as he took in his surroundings. Lin Feng's gaze bore into him, calculating, every fiber in his body coiled with anticipation.
"Elder Shui, Shi Gong," Lin Feng's voice was cold, unyielding. "End him."
Without hesitation, Elder Shui and Shi Gong advanced. Bai Xuemin stumbled backward, panic flashing in his eyes as he realized what was coming. He barely raised his arms to defend himself before a swift, lethal strike from Shi Gong tore through him, ending his life before he could utter a word.
As Bai Xuemin's body hit the forest floor, Lin Feng's heart froze. He felt a murmur of disbelief rising within him, stirring a raw edge of confusion. He had seen it—those rainbow-colored threads encircling Bai Xuemin like a divine shield, a fate so potent it defied ordinary destiny. In every novel he'd read, every story of a blessed hero, such a one as Bai Xuemin would have been saved, by fortune or intervention. But this… this was different.
Bai Xuemin lay still, his wide, lifeless eyes fixed on the heavens. There was no sudden twist, no last-minute intervention. Fate had left him vulnerable, abandoned in his final moment.
"How…?" Lin Feng whispered, his voice barely audible. "How could he die?"
Elder Shui turned to him, a faint smile of satisfaction tugging at the corner of her mouth. "Young Master, he was just a Rank 1, nothing more."
Shi Gong nodded, wiping his weapon clean. "A mere novice," he agreed calmly. "Nothing special about him."
Lin Feng heard their words, yet they barely registered. His mind was racing, weaving together thoughts, fragments of novels he'd read, destinies he'd studied. Everything he knew told him this wasn't supposed to happen. A fate as powerful as Bai Xuemin's should have woven a miraculous escape or some intervention to keep him alive—anything to defy death. Instead, his life had been extinguished like an ordinary flame.
It was then a shiver crept through him—a dark, thrilling realization that shook him to his core.
"Could it be…?" Lin Feng murmured to himself, his mind spinning. Could it be that I am the anomaly? The heavens themselves… they have no power over me?
A sense of fierce exhilaration began to brew within him, tinged with defiance. He'd always known he was different, he was a transmigrator but this… this was beyond what he had imagined. If he was truly outside the heavens' control, his path was no longer bound by the same rules that governed others. He was free—completely free.
Elder Shui gave him a concerned look. "Young Master?"
Lin Feng turned to her, a slow, dangerous smile forming on his lips. "Nothing. It was just a passing thought."
She nodded, though he could tell she was unconvinced, her brow furrowed slightly as if sensing the gravity of his words. Lin Feng didn't elaborate. There was no need to explain what he himself was only beginning to grasp.
The body of Bai Xuemin lay unmoving, yet Lin Feng could feel a persistent curiosity gnawing at him, a whisper in the back of his mind that something deeper was at play.
"Shi Gong," Lin Feng's voice dropped, his tone sharp with authority. "Inspect his body carefully. Check if he had a supreme physique or dao bone."
Shi Gong nodded obediently, bending over the fallen Bai Xuemin. His hands moved expertly, his senses attuned to any unique characteristics or signs of cultivation hidden within the body. He touched the man's wrists, his chest, and his brow, carefully scanning for traces of any powerful constitution. After a few moments, Shi Gong shook his head.
"No signs of a supreme physique, Young Master," he replied, his voice unwavering.
Lin Feng's brow furrowed. No supreme physique? The rainbow-colored threads of fate he'd seen should have indicated some extraordinary power, some unique trait or hidden potential. For Bai Xuemin to have none of these was a mystery in itself, a revelation that both confused and intrigued him.
"Elder Shui," Lin Feng continued, turning his calculating gaze on her. "Check his storage ring". If he bore the favor of the heavens, perhaps there's a treasure within it that explains his fortune.
Without hesitation, Elder Shui removed Bai Xuemin's ring and infused it with her Qi, her expression focused as she breached the minor defenses around the storage space within. A moment later, the contents spilled out into the clearing: a few cultivation pills, a couple of low-tier spirit stones, and a small jade pendant bearing the insignia of the Bai family. She rifled through them quickly, her keen eyes scrutinizing each item for anything of significance.
She looked back at Lin Feng, disappointment in her gaze. "Nothing of value, Young Master. These are merely the possessions of a minor disciple."
Lin Feng clenched his fists, the frustration of unanswered questions simmering beneath his calm exterior. His mind was racing, each new discovery only adding to the enigma of Bai Xuemin's fate. Every novel, every story he'd ever read told him this should have been impossible, that fate should have intervened to spare such a favored son. And yet, here he was, lying dead at Lin Feng's feet, his body ordinary, his treasures insignificant.
Shi Gong and Elder Shui gathered by his side, and together they surveyed the body of Bai Xuemin, lying in the quiet of the forest, his destiny unraveled in a single, unexpected moment. For Lin Feng, the world had shifted, and he now held a new understanding—a key to his own power.
He took one last look at Bai Xuemin's fallen form and turned away, stepping into the shadows that welcomed him with open arms. The night was still, the only sound the soft crunch of leaves underfoot as they retreated into the forest.
Then, piercing the silence, he heard it—a soft, unmistakable [DING]
The sound echoed in his mind, as clear as a bell, resonating with a promise of something yet to come.