I Am the Fated Villain

Chapter 1842. A Lifeform That Stowed Away from the Real Land? A Great Scheme, the Epoch Abyss

“The passage has long since been fully constructed. Right now we’re only repairing a few flaws. There won’t be any problems.”

The Lord of Reincarnation looked at the green boat before him. Deep within his eyes, countless runes and divine arts were being derived and evolved, as hundreds of millions upon billions of deductions flashed by in an instant.

Before every Calamity Epoch descended, an Executioner of Reckoning from the Real Land would arrive. The passage connecting the two realms had always existed in the deepest part of the Ancient Hidden Civilization—namely, the deepest reaches of the Land of Reincarnation.

This was a secret known only to each successive Lord of Reincarnation.

Reincarnation was the most mysterious, most important, and irreplaceable power in heaven and earth. It was also the most crucial cornerstone ensuring that the future could continue to develop in an orderly fashion.

Thus, the Authority of Reincarnation had always been passed down through generations within the Ancient Hidden Civilization.

To gain the recognition of the Reincarnation Authority, one had to become a “puppet” of the Real Land, serving as the vanguard before every great reckoning of the Calamity Epoch. Throughout the immeasurable ages of the Boundless Expanse, they had been despised by countless civilizations and true worlds.

Strictly speaking, the Lord of Reincarnation could only be considered someone recognized by the Authority of Reincarnation. Unlike other True Path existences who had mastered authorities and existed in a symbiotic relationship with them—harmonizing with the Heavenly Dao and occupying the most primal and fundamental portions of authority—the Lord of Reincarnation was different.

“If nothing goes wrong, then all the better. But if even the slightest mishap occurs, then you and I alike will end up with nothing, our bodies and souls destroyed.”

The World Lord’s gaze was profound. Within his eyes, billions upon billions of bubble-like worlds seemed to be shattering and evolving every instant.

“In the future I have seen, everything is chaotic and disorderly. An unknown power has enveloped the entire Boundless Expanse. It is no longer something you and I can influence.”

“That no longer matters. What does the future of the Boundless Expanse, or the fate of all living beings, have to do with you and me?”

“Isn’t everything we seek still transcendence? To transcend this place, transcend realms, transcend the Boundless Expanse and the Other Shore, shatter every mystery, and truly step beyond all constraints…”

The Lord of Reincarnation shook his head slightly.

“What do you think of the flesh and blood of the Acting Heaven Lord provided by Ancestor Xu?” The World Lord suddenly asked.

The Lord of Reincarnation spread his palm. A piece of flesh suffused with blood-colored radiance appeared.

Within it seemed to exist many secrets beyond even their ability to perceive. It resembled a stream of air that should not exist in this world, yet also seemed like a substance with no fixed state, changing every moment while possessing an inconceivable life force, as though it were the source of all matter.

“The level of this flesh surpasses ours. That alone proves that beyond the True Path realm, there is still a road to walk—and someone has already reached it.”

“The Real Land may be like the Boundless Expanse, or it may not be. But what I can be certain of is that within the bodies of those beings from the Real Land lies the secret we have been seeking all along—the Other Shore we wish to reach.”

“However, we cannot uncover the secrets within this flesh in a short time. Ancestor Xu has clearly concealed many things from us. By handing over this flesh, he merely wished to let us know that the Acting Heaven Lord carries extraordinary secrets.”

“Just like now. The transformations occurring within the Heaven-Felling Alliance— even if you possessed the Authority of Creation, you still could not achieve what he has done: bringing existence from nonexistence.”

At that moment, countless versions of the Lord of Reincarnation appeared in his mind, each sharing his appearance.

Every one of them stared at the flesh, attempting to analyze and investigate its mysteries. A single thought could instantly evolve into hundreds of millions of possible futures.

At their level, there were almost no secrets left in existence.

Given enough time, they could investigate the many mysteries contained within this flesh just as Ancestor Xu had done and determine the Acting Heaven Lord’s origins.

Yet they also had to admit that this flesh indeed contained secrets they presently could not decipher.

“The Alliance Lord of the Heaven-Felling Alliance also cannot create something from nothing.”

“The grand prosperity he has established within the Heaven-Felling Alliance merely comes from extracting a kind of substance from fate and faith—a substance we have been unable to analyze.”

“That substance can create opportunities and fortunes, helping living beings rapidly improve their cultivation and strength.”

“But it comes with enormous drawbacks.”

“Because that substance is extracted by him, he possesses complete control over it. Those living beings are merely being forcefully nurtured, and in the end they will only become his puppets.”

The World Lord clearly already knew the various actions and so-called truths behind the Heaven-Felling Alliance.

Yet his tone held no disdain.

Instead, there was faint admiration. At their level, all living beings throughout the world were no longer on the same dimensional plane as them. Whether those beings, worlds, or civilizations were someone else’s puppets made no difference.

Livestock raised in pens and livestock left to roam freely were the same in their eyes. They merely marveled at the origin and miraculous nature of that mysterious substance they could not comprehend.

“Could the Acting Heaven Lord be a lifeform that stowed away from the Real Land? Are the traces of blood on that green boat similar to this piece of flesh?” The World Lord suddenly asked.

The Lord of Reincarnation shook his head.

“I cannot tell. Nor can I deduce its origins or causal connections.”

“But the Acting Heaven Lord is indeed very likely from the Real Land.”

“Unless he has shattered everything we understand about established laws and orderly futures and forcefully advanced to that unimaginable step.”

Since ancient times, Heavenly Authorities only emerged during periods of great upheaval, when everything became chaotic and impossible to predict.

They were regarded as the sole keys to exploring the Heavenly Dao.

Only by possessing an Authority could one be called a True Path existence. As for whether that True Path actually existed or was truly real, no one could verify it.

Upon reaching the True Path realm, one genuinely no longer knew how to continue advancing, yet within this world one was virtually omnipotent.

Only those possessing Heavenly Authorities could sense one another’s existence. Yet on the Acting Heaven Lord, neither the Lord of Reincarnation nor the World Lord could sense any corresponding authority.

At the same time, there was also no trace of Supreme Shattering upon him. That unwavering will capable of crushing everything—including his own body, future, and all possible paths—followed by the determination to survive after embracing certain death, was impossible to conceal.

Thus some Path’s End existences speculated that he had embarked upon a third road, unknown to the world, unseen in past, present, or future.

That road belonged to him alone. And he had evidently already transcended past, present, and future.

“The Calamity Epoch is about to descend. This is a great transformation of heaven and earth unseen throughout history.”

“In this era, a new Heavenly Authority will emerge.”

“That Fortune Lord wishes to borrow our strength to contend for it.”

“According to my deductions, this Heavenly Authority indeed has a connection with the path of fortune cultivated by the Fortune Lord.”

The voices of the two gradually lowered.

Existences at the Path’s End had each reached the ultimate limit of a particular Dao. Those titled Lord or Ancestor—such as the Lord of Reincarnation and the World Lord—were all such figures. The difference was that they possessed Heavenly Authorities.

At the same time, in another deep underground palace, Ancestor Xu, the Fortune Lord, and the Calamity Lord were gathered together.

Before them floated a jade disk that seemed eternally motionless. Within it, hazy scenes unfolded, as if countless aspects of mortal life were being reenacted.

Yin and Yang energies circulated, forming the image of a Taiji diagram.

“The Reincarnation Jade Disk. This is a supreme treasure once refined by the Lord of Reincarnation using the Authority of Reincarnation.”

“If you wish to fish someone out of the Sea of Reincarnation without interfering with the original Heavenly Dao, you may use this treasure.” The Calamity Lord spoke.

Ancestor Xu nodded slightly and smiled. “Many thanks for your assistance, Brother Calamity. I owe you another favor.”

The Calamity Lord replied, “I once owed you an enormous karmic debt. This merely repays a portion of it.”

The Fortune Lord did not know what karmic relationship existed between the two.

After arriving at the Ancient Hidden Civilization, he had indeed learned many things he had never previously encountered.

Whether the Lord of Reincarnation or the World Lord, both were existences beyond his prior knowledge.

The power of Authority…As for Ancestor Xu, he was far too mysterious. Although he appeared to stand at the same Path’s End realm as himself, his methods and strength far surpassed his own.

The number one figure beneath the True Path realm?

The Fortune Lord looked deeply at Ancestor Xu and the Calamity Lord as they conversed.

He had no idea whom Ancestor Xu intended to retrieve from the Sea of Reincarnation.

If someone had already reincarnated, could they still be found?

And even if they were found, would they still be the same person?

Or merely a similar flower?

The Fortune Lord clasped his hands and took his leave. He did not stay long. Given his identity and strength, even within the Ancient Hidden Civilization he stood among the very strongest.

Within the endless void he possessed an independent spacetime where he and his subordinates currently rested and recovered.

After the battle in the Nightmare Demon Domain, he had still not returned to his peak condition.

After the Fortune Lord departed, the Calamity Lord’s gaze shifted slightly.

“His existence will inevitably provoke conflict between the Heaven-Felling Alliance and the Ancient Hidden Civilization.”

“You brought him here. What exactly are you planning?”

“Could it be that you intend to use the Lord of Reincarnation and the World Lord to test the Heaven-Felling Alliance Lord?”

“But now such testing has become meaningless.”

“The Acting Heaven Lord has revived. Even the Nine Heavens Land has been tested. His identity is already self-evident.”

Although the Lord of Reincarnation resided in the deepest reaches of the Land of Reincarnation and guarded the entire Ancient Hidden Civilization, he was not the master of the Five Royal Clans or the Ancient Hidden Imperial Clan.

At most, their relationship resembled that of a superior and subordinate.

Under normal circumstances, the Five Royal Clans had to obey the Lord of Reincarnation’s commands.

Throughout history, many Lords of Reincarnation had come and gone.

Yet the Five Royal Clans and the Ancient Hidden Imperial Clan had never changed.

From a certain perspective, the five Path’s End figures—Calamity, Karma, Longevity, End, and Void—were the true representatives of the Real Land within the Boundless Expanse. Their existence and that of the Ancient Hidden Civilization were inseparably linked.

The Lord of Reincarnation was merely a puppet attached to the Authority of Reincarnation, maintaining the cycle of reincarnation and ensuring the orderly evolution of the future.

“I have given him an opportunity.”

“The Lord of Reincarnation harbors great ambitions. He is unwilling to remain forever guarding the depths of the Land of Reincarnation.”

Ancestor Xu smiled mysteriously.

The Calamity Lord frowned. He did not question further.

Both of them bore within themselves a certain supreme, indescribable will.

For countless ages, that will had ensured that the reckoning of the Calamity Epoch could proceed without interference.

Aside from matters concerning the Calamity Epoch itself, they would neither interfere in nor concern themselves with anything else.

In a sense, they were like manifestations of the Heavenly Dao’s will itself—indispensable components ensuring the operation of certain rules.

Carrying the Reincarnation Jade Disk, Ancestor Xu’s figure flashed. He appeared outside the roots of the Epoch Mother Tree, a place filled with vast and mysterious aura. He used no techniques or powers.

Standing there in his ordinary size, he seemed like a speck of dust before a blazing sun when compared to the immense Epoch Mother Tree.

Yet with his arrival, the tree trembled slightly.

“What a pity…”

“It was severed by that supreme existence.”

“Does the Real Land possess a complete cycle of reincarnation?”

“Can it truly resurrect the dead?”

“Not merely similar flowers, but people with complete memories, complete bodies, and complete causal histories?”

Ancestor Xu sighed softly.

According to legends throughout the worlds, the Ancestor of the Heaven-Decline Multitude once controlled the Dao of Reality and Illusion. The Fake-Becomes-Real Art he created could supposedly resurrect genuine people from vanished histories and transcend reincarnation and causality. Thus he had traversed several Epochal Great Destructions, journeying alone through past, present, and future.

Starting from a single grain of dust, he created a world that belonged only to himself. Because he believed his world to be real, he attempted to resurrect his former relatives, friends, homeland, and people within it.

The price, however, was eternal loss and confusion. He became trapped within the illusory dream that belonged solely to him.

The Acting Heaven Lord had once pointed out the flaws in his Fake-Becomes-Real Art and shown him a new path. Yet that new path possessed flaws as well.

The people he manifested were not the people he truly wished to see.

After regaining clarity, he felt deceived and mocked by the Acting Heaven Lord. The Acting Heaven Lord had bluntly told him: It was not a heaven-deceiving technique. It was merely an illusion used to deceive himself.

“He ruined my Dao Heart and shattered my convictions. How could he not be at fault?”

The Reincarnation Jade Disk emitted a dim and hazy glow.

Across the vast Sea of Reincarnation, it resembled the light of a firefly.

Ancestor Xu sat cross-legged there. A simple and spotless ancient robe appeared on his body. His originally blurred features became youthful and handsome, carrying the temperament of a scholar.

His consciousness entered the Reincarnation Jade Disk. Immediately afterward, a vast and boundless power spread outward.

Along the shore of the Sea of Reincarnation, upon a reef, a gentle woman in green robes with spiral hair buns noticed the phenomenon and looked into the distance.

There, waves surged violently. Countless true spirits boiled and gathered together, forming something akin to a storm.

“Master, shall we go and take a look?”

Little Wangyue circled beside her and transformed into a silver-haired girl.

The woman in green merely glanced over and gently shook her head.

“Another pitiful soul who has come to the Land of Reincarnation searching for a similar flower…”

She withdrew her gaze and continued guiding the wandering true spirits into the sea.

As she walked, the chains around her ankles clattered.

Cold blood seeped from them.

Upon the crown of the Epoch Mother Tree stood countless magnificent palaces.

Within one boundless bubble-like world known as the Ancestral Court, a woman dressed in colorful robes stood calmly. She seemed to exist within a realm of nothingness.

A mysterious aura spread outward from her in every direction. The Ancestral Court before her remained silent and motionless.

Inside the various cave mansions and palaces of the Epoch Mother Tree, many members of the Cicada Clan wore puzzled expressions.

During recent days, they had repeatedly felt the Epoch Mother Tree tremble slightly. The disturbances were not large.

Ordinarily, world tides could also cause similar vibrations.

But never this frequently. Many clansmen wished to seek out the Second Princess, Ji Xiangmiao, for answers.

Yet they learned she was in secluded cultivation and receiving no visitors.

Left with no choice, they withdrew. The Third Princess, Ji Ziyi, who had recently returned to the clan, had likewise vanished without a trace.

No one knew where she had gone.

At the roots of the Epoch Mother Tree lay a forbidden region known as the Epoch Abyss. Experts of the Cicada Clan guarded it generation after generation.

Without a jade token, entry was impossible. It was the burial ground where the remnants of destroyed universes and shattered true worlds flowed after the collapse of all realms.

These remains served as nourishment for the Epoch Mother Tree.

At that very moment, a cold and beautiful woman dressed in black was enduring unimaginable suffering there. It felt as though the might of billions upon billions of universes were crushing and washing over her.

Yet she continued moving forward. The surroundings were filled with darkness and profound emptiness.

No sense of direction remained. The roots of the Epoch Mother Tree were anchored here. If placed within a vast true world, they would resemble grand rivers of stars. Even a tiny strand of root could penetrate countless dimensions of spacetime.

As those roots sensed her arrival, they trembled slightly. They trembled because of the white jade bottle in her hand. They seemed afraid of it.

Had she not carried the aura of the Cicada Clan upon her body, this place would already have descended into chaos.

“The Epoch Abyss contains the secrets left behind after the destruction of countless worlds, as well as many mysteries unknown to the world.”

“What a pity… there is no time to investigate them.”

The woman in black gritted her teeth and persevered onward.

She intended to reach the deepest part of the abyss and scatter the substance contained within the white jade bottle.