I Am the Fated Villain

Chapter 1828. The Choice for Dealing with the Dark Race — Discussing How to Seal the Culprit Right in Front of Him?

“The general trend of heaven and earth… the precursor to the premature arrival of the Epoch Calamity…”

“It should indeed be so.”

Gu Changge looked towards a youth in a distant dimension. Around him, the embryonic form of a protagonist’s destiny was beginning to condense.

Given enough time to grow, that youth would surely become a giant capable of stirring up endless storms throughout the Vast Expanse. This was the trend of heaven and earth: prosperity reaching its peak would inevitably decline.

And when decline reached a certain point, a period of replenishment would follow. During such a period, many beings destined by fate would be born.

Whether it was a small world, a vast great realm, a multiversal cosmos, or even a True Realm, the same principle applied.

The Dark Race had held Dark Sacrifices and liquidated countless worlds. Over the years, the civilizations they had swept away were far from few.

Under such circumstances, the power of those shattered and drifting worlds and universes, propelled by an invisible trend, would collide and undergo certain transformations.

As a result, they would descend upon living beings with strong convictions, becoming their opportunities—or in simpler terms, their golden fingers.

Imperishable Substance and Creation Substance themselves were the source materials from which all things in existence were constructed. They could be called the origin of all creation.

Back in the Daochang True Realm, Gu Changge had personally extracted such substances. To make the realm’s destiny flourish further, he had personally scattered those opportunities throughout the world.

And now, the boundless Vast Expanse was in precisely such an era of responding to calamity.

The heavens sensed that a great catastrophe was approaching, and thus, in this era, countless individuals with immense destiny erupted forth like a tidal wave to answer the coming disaster.

With just a glance, Gu Changge could see that within those ruined and withered universes, numerous extraordinary individuals had appeared in only a few short years, each possessing their own opportunities. However, creatures known as protagonists appeared in every era.

Among them, those who could truly reach the Ancestor Dao Realm were invariably protagonists spanning hundreds of eras.

As for those who stepped into the End of the Path Realm, they were protagonists across countless eras. Such figures had always left indelible marks upon history throughout the endless ages.

“After prosperity comes decline. Once the Dark Sacrifice ends and the Epoch Calamity arrives, it will be time for me to proceed with the next stage of my plan.”

Gu Changge withdrew his gaze and stopped paying attention to the current changes throughout the Vast Expanse.

In the years that followed, while he allowed Ling Yuling and the others to integrate the Vast Expanse and resist the Dark Race, he also began taking action himself.

On one hand, he stirred the rivers of destiny throughout countless worlds and universes.

On the other end, he continuously scattered opportunities and fortunes through Imperishable Substance and Creation Substance, intentionally manipulating the destinies of certain living beings.

This included many people around him—Mo Tong, Chu Xiuyan, Ye Suyi, the Spirit Emperor, the White Bone Ancestor King, Zhuofeng Xie, and many rising younger and middle-generation experts within the Heaven-Defying Alliance.

Gu Changge sat at the center of the Heaven-Defying Alliance, intimidating the entire Vast Expanse. Under his deliberate manipulation, these beings experienced explosive growth. They developed rapidly within their respective universes, accumulating destiny and gradually displaying the characteristics of era protagonists.

Meanwhile, Ling Yuling continued integrating the various races and civilizations throughout the surrounding universes and timelines, causing the Heaven-Defying Alliance to grow ever stronger.

Its expansion was like a giant whale opening its jaws in the deep sea, constantly swimming forward and swallowing countless True Realms into itself.

To prepare for the coming Dark Calamity, the leaders of various True Realm civilizations—powerhouses whose cultivation had already reached the level of surviving seven Heavenly Declines—held repeated discussions.

Eventually, they all arrived at the central hall of the Heaven-Defying Alliance to seek an audience with Gu Changge. They had already noticed that the Dark Race had dispatched four High Priests to accelerate the descent of the Dark Source Land.

Among them was an incomparably vast and magnificent altar. Four smaller yet equally imposing altars stood around it.

Such a spectacle had never been seen before, not even in ancient records. Originally, it would still take several hundred years before the Dark Source Land connected fully with the Dark Race’s homeland.

But now, the Dark Race had clearly lost patience.

Using every means available, they were accelerating the fall of the Dark Source Land towards the Vast Expanse.

The upper echelons of the Heaven-Defying Alliance had all fallen into solemn unease. They did not understand Gu Changge’s intentions. Yet they could see that he seemed unwilling to engage the Dark Race in a life-and-death war and had made no move to stop them.

Although Ling Yuling, as Vice Alliance Leader, had ordered the gathering of forces from various True Realm civilizations to resist the Dark Race, those Ancestor Dao Realm beings who had survived eight Heavenly Declines did not particularly obey her commands.

Especially now that Gu Changge himself was seated within the alliance, those experts seemed to possess newfound confidence. In their eyes, the Dark Race’s reluctance to attack the Heaven-Defying Alliance stemmed from fear of Gu Changge.

Perhaps the Dark Calamity would not be as devastating as people imagined.

The Vast Expanse was so enormous.

What if a portion of territory was simply given to the Dark Race?

As long as neither side interfered with the other and both remained within their own domains, perhaps such an arrangement was acceptable. There were actually quite a few powerful figures who held such thoughts, including beings from the Forbidden Zones such as Mu Fuguang, the Compassionate Monk, and Tong Xian.

As for Gu Changge’s true intentions, they could not possibly guess them. Still, since he had named the organization the Heaven-Defying Alliance, it surely could not have been founded merely to oppose the Dark Race.

Within the grand hall, powerful auras filled the air.

Blurred figures appeared one after another.

Around them, time and space seemed to shift and alternate.

Had Gu Changge not been present, suppressing all these auras, the mere collision of so many Ancestor Dao Realm presences would have been enough to throw time and space into chaos and cause the hall to collapse.

As Vice Alliance Leader, even Ling Yuling had no idea what Gu Changge had been doing recently. The courtyard where he secluded himself remained utterly silent, without the slightest movement. However, she had been overwhelmed with managing the countless affairs of the alliance and rarely found time to discuss matters with him.

Now, Gu Changge had completely adopted the attitude of a hands-off manager. Almost all matters of the Heaven-Defying Alliance had been handed to her.

Left with no choice, Ling Yuling selected suitable helpers such as the Spirit Emperor and others who had long followed Gu Changge to assist her.

Today, the Heaven-Defying Alliance was unquestionably the strongest force in the Vast Expanse.

The mountains of work accumulated each day gave her endless headaches.

“I have already sent for the Alliance Leader. He will arrive shortly,” Ling Yuling said.

The hall was incomparably vast, yet still crowded with people.

Countless Ancestor Dao Realm beings had gathered together. Such a scene was almost impossible to witness, even throughout history.

Among them were many who had surpassed seven Heavenly Declines and had already survived eight. For example, Mu Fuguang, Demon Ancestor Dihuang, Ji Hanjing—the current ruler of the Uncentral Immortal Dynasty—and many supreme experts from hidden races.

Counting them all, there were more than ten beings who had survived eight Heavenly Declines. There were also figures such as Ethereal Saint Ancestor, who had already survived nine Heavenly Declines.

Not to mention Luo Ancestor and the Eternal Primordial God, who were even stronger than Ethereal Saint Ancestor.

Even though Ling Yuling had nearly recovered her peak strength, she still felt considerable pressure facing those two.

She suspected that both were true End-of-the-Path level figures. The Eternal Primordial God might be slightly weaker, but still surpassed Ethereal Saint Ancestor.

A single Ancestor Dao Realm expert was enough to oversee a supreme True Realm.

For the current Vast Expanse to gather such strength was still reasonable.

Yet Ling Yuling could clearly see that the foundation of this era’s Vast Expanse was far inferior to that of the past.

“To stop the Dark Calamity, the best method now is to find the six Primordial Civilization Treasures…”

“And follow the example of the ancient sages by sealing the Dark Source Land once again.”

Gu Changge’s figure soon appeared within the hall.

Facing the salutations of the alliance members, he merely waved his hand casually.

“If the six Primordial Civilization Treasures cannot be gathered, then fighting the Dark Race to the death is not a solution.”

“I also have no intention of wasting our strength here. The Epoch Calamity will soon descend once more. Compared to that, the Dark Calamity is not worth excessive concern.”

Gu Changge succinctly explained his plan.

The trend towards the complete unification of the Vast Expanse was already unstoppable.

Why would he continue staging such a performance and unnecessarily consume his own forces?

Whether it was the Heaven-Defying Alliance or the Dark Race, both were ultimately his pieces and his power.

What benefit was there in making two of his own chess pieces slaughter each other?

After the Immortal Dao Alliance Conference, he had remained within the Ethereal Sacred Domain, outwardly fighting the Black Lotus Cult alongside everyone else. He had hoped this approach would force the hidden big fish to reveal themselves.

But he had underestimated their caution.

In the end, only the Fate Lord had taken the bait.

Such a small fish was not even worth keeping.

As for Ancestor Xu, Gu Changge had always known his ambitions and schemes.

Back when Gu Changge was still the Acting Lord of Heaven, Ancestor Xu had constantly tried to uncover his origins.

The Chaos of the Heavenly Multitudes had also been orchestrated by Ancestor Xu behind the scenes.

Yet Gu Changge still had no intention of dealing with him.

Because Ancestor Xu did not realize that he had already become Gu Changge’s bait. And unlike ordinary bait, he was living bait.

As for whether he would manage to lure out something larger, Gu Changge could only wait and see. At present, the Vast Expanse had already reached this stage.

No force remained capable of restraining the Heaven-Defying Alliance.

As for the Dark Race, they could practically be ignored altogether—after all, they were his creation to begin with.

The situation of a unified Vast Expanse had already been established. Yet those hidden figures still showed no sign of revealing themselves.

If it were only one person, perhaps it could be called coincidence. But when virtually every big fish remained hidden, there was only one explanation.

The current Vast Expanse no longer gave them any reason to descend into the game. What happened to the Vast Expanse had nothing to do with them.

They stood beyond the Epoch Calamity and were unaffected by its cleansing. Even if the Vast Expanse were destroyed, it would eventually recover.

Those people had already understood the true nature of the calamity and refused to become crops waiting to be harvested.

And if even the Epoch Calamity did not concern them, why would they care about a mere Dark Calamity?

Whether the Dark Race won or the Heaven-Defying Alliance prevailed, neither side affected their interests.

Why should they intervene?

That was the current situation.

If Gu Changge were not concerned that publicly revealing his identity now would shatter the faith and unity the Heaven-Defying Alliance had painstakingly gathered—Perhaps even turning powerful figures such as Ling Yuling and the others against him and forcing him to spend time cleaning up the aftermath—He could have simply merged the Heaven-Defying Alliance and the Dark Race into a single force.

“The foundation of the Vast Expanse is far weaker than before. Even if all the True Realm civilizations unite, they are still far inferior to the era that once fought against the Dark Calamity. With our current strength, stopping the Dark Race will be extremely difficult.”

“The Alliance Leader is right. The best solution now is to find the six Primordial Civilization Treasures and seal the Dark Source Land once more. Through constant suppression, its power can eventually be worn away completely.”

The experts in the hall began discussing the matter.

Most of them were simply waiting for Gu Changge’s attitude.

After all, such matters required a leader. And only Gu Changge could truly command universal respect.

“The scourge of the Dark Race must be eliminated. As long as it remains, the Vast Expanse will never know peace.”

“Countless races and civilizations have already been destroyed by them. Every day, more worlds are invaded and sacrificed. Even if we coexist peacefully now, once the Dark Race regains its strength, we will be their first target.”

“Alliance Leader, we believe action must be taken. There is no reason to delay any longer. None of us fear death.”

Many people spoke with firm conviction. Their homes and worlds had already fallen into darkness. Their hatred for the Dark Race ran deep.

“Alliance Leader, the Dark Race has delayed war because they fear our strength.”

“Why not pretend to coexist peacefully with them? We can establish territorial boundaries and restrict their actions, preventing them from slaughtering and sacrificing worlds at will. Meanwhile, we secretly search for the Primordial Civilization Treasures and prepare our counterattack.”

Others proposed a different approach. No matter what, there were only three choices:

Fight to the death. Peacefully coexist. Or pretend to coexist while secretly preparing a solution.

Luo Ancestor and the Eternal Primordial God remained silent.

Listening to the discussions around them, their emotions were indescribably complicated. If these people knew that the Dark Race they were determined to eradicate had been created by Gu Changge himself, what expressions would they wear?

Here they were, discussing in front of Gu Changge how they might one day seal and suppress him.

“Although I am the Alliance Leader, I will allow all of you to decide this matter.”

“I shall give you three days. Three days from now, everyone will return here and cast their vote. The final decision will follow the will of the majority.”

With a casual glance, Gu Changge already knew the thoughts of most people present. He also displayed a democratic and enlightened image, refusing to make the decision alone and allowing them to choose for themselves.

Any sensible person knew which option would result in the least losses. The Heaven-Defying Alliance had become the safest and most stable region in the Vast Expanse. The races and worlds that had migrated there were finally developing peacefully.

If a full-scale war with the Dark Race erupted, who would bear the losses?

Human nature was inherently selfish.

Not everyone could truly place the world above themselves.

Three days later, the results were announced. Nearly ninety percent of the Ancestor Dao Realm experts chose the third option: Pretend to coexist with the Dark Race while secretly searching for the Primordial Civilization Treasures.

The various True Realm civilizations immediately shifted their focus toward gathering clues, investigating causes and effects, and tracking down the treasures.

Of the six Primordial Civilization Treasures: The Gate of Eternal Life was in Gu Changge’s possession.

The Mirror of Reincarnation was in Xi Yuan Saintess’s hands.

The Wheel of Deliverance was with the Fate Lord. The World-Burying Coffin remained with the Heavenly Multitudes.

The Book of Grand Dao was missing. The Pool of Creation was currently being brought back to the Heaven-Defying Alliance.

Within Gu Changge’s perception, he could clearly track the Pool of Creation’s whereabouts. The chess piece he had casually left behind long ago—a youth named Zhu Xuan from the Floating Continent who carried the bloodline of the Lord of the Pan Clan—had already found the Pool of Creation.

He was now transporting it back and was on his way to the Heaven-Defying Alliance.

As the descendant of the Pan Clan Lord, the Eastern Emperor who had once fought against the Dark Calamity, Zhu Xuan was the sole surviving member of a clan exterminated by the Heavenly Multitudes.

Naturally, clues regarding the Pool of Creation existed within him.

After so many years, he had finally recovered it. Although the journey had been far from smooth and he had encountered countless dangers and obstacles, his great destiny protected him.

In the end, every crisis had been resolved safely, and he continued onward without serious mishap.