Chapter 277 - 236: Intercepting Fortune for One’s Own Use

Chapter 277: Chapter 236: Intercepting Fortune for One’s Own Use

"Dong Qin, you’ve certainly taught your disciples from Six Clouds Peak well," Ji Ziyang said lightly.

Hearing this, Dong Qin’s expression changed slightly.

If Ji Ziyang had shown his anger openly, it would have just led to a verbal squabble, and at most, a brief exchange of blows before things ended.

But this kind of bland, indifferent sarcasm held a much deeper meaning.

Although Ze Yao had taken first place among the Merging Realm disciples of Qingcang, it was hard to say if he would live to see tomorrow.

"He is a descendant of my clan. Give me some face. Six Clouds Peak is willing to offer some compensation to that disciple and Li Long," Dong Qin said.

"It’s not my call. You’ll have to ask him yourself," Ji Ziyang said.

However, before Dong Qin had a chance to ask, Zhang Ji moved.

He left the spectator stands and walked straight toward the teleportation point outside the competition grounds.

All eyes were on him, wondering what he was going to do.

"Li Long?" Feng Chen said, seemingly realizing something. "Don’t act on impulse!"

"Mr. Feng, I know my limits," Zhang Ji said, bowing to Feng Chen with an exceedingly gentle expression.

After a moment of hesitation, Feng Chen did not stop Zhang Ji. The others also watched this scene in silence.

On the high platform, the ten Peak Masters wore varying expressions, while Sect Leader Chen Hong’s Divine Will Projection watched in silence.

Under normal circumstances, he should have already gone down to present the award to Ze Yao. But now, he didn’t move, and the other Peak Masters didn’t dare to move either.

They had to give Zhang Ji a chance—a chance to prove himself and avenge his fellow disciple.

After teleporting out of the competition grounds, Ze Yao expected to be greeted with glory. Instead, what awaited him was the sword-bearing young man standing opposite him.

The vast arena fell silent.

And it wasn’t just here. Countless eyes throughout the Qingcang Sect were focused on this very moment.

Anyone watching the grand competition on a hand-viewer could see this scene directly.

"My attainments in the Sword Dao are actually quite average," were Zhang Ji’s first words. He then added, "If you can withstand this one strike from my sword, I will let the matter drop."

As he spoke, Zhang Ji, for the first time, took the longsword from his back and held it in his hand.

This sword was a Profound Tier Magical Artifact he had chosen after taking first place in the [Rookie Rankings].

It had no other special features; its material was simply incredibly tough.

With this sword, Zhang Ji could channel more energy and utilize more advanced techniques.

Hearing Zhang Ji’s words, Ze Yao almost laughed in anger.

’Who does he think I am?’

’And what is my cultivation level?’

’At this very moment, I am the Merging Realm champion of this Qingcang grand competition.’

’And Zhang Ji?’

’Eighth Heaven of Divine Acupoints!’

’That’s more than a whole major realm below me!’

’Are all Celestial Lords’ personal disciples this clueless about their own limitations?’

"One strike? Isn’t that Li Long being a bit too dismissive of Ze Yao?"

"Did a Divine Acupoint Realm cultivator really say that to someone in the Merging Realm? Did I hear that right?"

"Are the Celestial Lord’s personal disciples really that amazing? Or does he have some trump card?"

"He’s not just going to make a symbolic move just to get some face back, is he?"

No one believed that Zhang Ji could defeat Ze Yao in a single strike.

Ze Yao himself didn’t believe it either.

He even felt a little like laughing, but he held it in.

"During the previous match, I was indeed overcome with anger and spoke out of turn. Since Junior Brother Li is willing to resolve this conflict with a single strike, it would be improper for me to refuse. I only ask that you show mercy, Junior Brother Li," Ze Yao said.

Now, suddenly, he was willing to be polite.

Too bad it was a little too late.

Some mistakes can only be made once in a lifetime.

Although he didn’t think Zhang Ji’s one strike could harm him, Ze Yao still prepared himself. He gripped the treasured sabers in his four arms, assuming a fully defensive stance.

He wanted to parry Zhang Ji’s sword cleanly and show everyone that the so-called personal disciple of a Celestial Lord was merely luckier than him, and nothing more.

In the spectator stands.

Yu Cifeng’s gaze fell on the sword in Zhang Ji’s hand.

He remembered Zhang Ji saying during a previous match that he normally didn’t use that sword.

That, in fact, using it was a sign of disrespect toward his opponent.

It seemed Ze Yao was clearly not being taken seriously by Zhang Ji.

But that was to be expected, after what Ze Yao had said.

However, Yu Cifeng still had his doubts about whether Zhang Ji’s strike could actually harm Ze Yao.

After all, he had never seen Zhang Ji draw his sword.

Elsewhere, Ding Zhuoran, another of the Celestial Lord’s personal disciples, had fully opened the third eye in the center of his forehead.

This eye could see the past and future and perceive the threads of karma.

This talent was his ticket straight into the Profound Heart Realm.

It was because of this that he had earned the Celestial Lord’s recognition.

At this very moment, he too was observing the outcome of Zhang Ji’s impending strike.

"Zhuoran, can he win?" Xu Youjing asked.

Xu Youjing was very curious about the outcome.

Because when Ding Zhuoran had been at the same realm, he would have been incapable of such a feat.

Ding Zhuoran didn’t answer, because he couldn’t see the outcome clearly.

The karma surrounding Zhang Ji was too dense, forming layer upon layer of fog that he could not peer through.

Amidst everyone’s anticipation, Zhang Ji’s right hand closed around the hilt of his sword.

In that instant, his posture was just like that of Mikhail.

The contemporary Sword Saint of Lan’er World.

He had spent one thousand four hundred and fifty-six years to create a single Sword Skill: [Godslayer].

And yet, Zhang Ji had mastered and even deconstructed that very move after seeing it only once.

Now, Zhang Ji had combined it with the "Izakai Skill", innovating on the original. He would unleash it at a lower realm, with less than a ten-thousandth of the original’s energy level.

In an instant, the blade left its sheath and then returned.

Ze Yao stood frozen on the spot, his aura gradually dissipating.

He had been dead for a while.

This strike was not just about speed; it was a sword of time and space that sought cause and found effect—a guaranteed hit.

Before he even struck, Zhang Ji had already used the "Izakai Skill" to calculate and reinforce his desired outcome. Under this strike, within Zhang Ji’s calculated model, the probability of Ze Yao dying without even reacting was already over ninety-nine percent.

Even if a Peak Master at the Profound Heart Realm had tried to intervene, they might not have been able to save him.

In terms of realm, this strike had even touched the Domain of the Void Realm.

Zhang Ji turned and walked back the way he came.

Behind him, Ze Yao stood motionless, his eyes vacant.

A large portion of the audience hadn’t even clearly seen Zhang Ji draw his sword.

"What happened? Why is he leaving? Wasn’t he going to strike?"

"He already did. It was too fast. I only sensed a slight fluctuation of Qi and Blood."

"Why is Ze Yao still standing there? He’s not moving at all!"

"His soul has been gone for a while. He looks unharmed on the outside, but his insides are probably a mess. The very particles of his body have been shredded by Sword Intent."

.....

It was only now that the many cultivators of the Qingcang Sect once again understood the true worth of a Celestial Lord’s personal disciple.

Why they could directly receive treatment on par with a main Peak Master.

Simply because with their talent alone, their lowest potential was to become a main Peak Master.

Their upper limit was impossible to fathom, with the potential to break through to the Void Realm.

Master Dong Qin’s expression was grim. This was because Ze Yao was her descendant—the sole heir of his line.

For a long time, her descendants had not been particularly outstanding, with few achieving success in cultivation.

In this generation, only this one heir remained, and he possessed a bit of talent for cultivation.

Thus, she had poured considerable resources into nurturing him, intending for him to be her successor.

Yet now, her line of succession was broken. All the effort she had poured in had gone up in flames.

"Dong Qin, Li Long may have let it go, but I haven’t. Give me ten Spirit Restoring Fruits from your Six Clouds Peak, and I won’t cause you any more trouble," said Ji Ziyang.

"Ten? Are you insane! My medicinal field only produces three fruits every five thousand years, and you ask for ten right off the bat?" Dong Qin’s face was livid.

"Not giving them? Then I’ll make sure you don’t have any left at all!" Ji Ziyang retorted.

"Don’t go too far!" Dong Qin said.

"You were the one who went too far first. Don’t think I don’t know about the little tricks you pulled earlier," Ji Ziyang said. "My Divine Peak’s "Azure Dragon God-Stinging Skill" specializes in cultivating Divine Intent. Even though this is just a Divine Will Projection of mine, I can still sense your little schemes."

Knowing she was in the wrong, Dong Qin looked toward Chen Hong, but saw that the Sect Leader had no intention of getting involved or playing peacemaker. She could only swallow this loss.

"Hmph, take them! I hope you don’t choke on them!"

With a wave of her hand, Dong Qin tossed ten Spirit Restoring Fruits to Ji Ziyang, adding a harsh but ultimately empty threat.

With that said, her Divine Will Projection dissipated.

Having lost so much face, she was too embarrassed to remain any longer.

As if Ze Yao’s death had never happened, the results of the competition were quickly re-announced. The winner of the Merging Realm division for the Qingcang Sect’s grand competition was Xiao Mingyu.

His injuries had just been healed when he was pushed back onto the stage to receive his reward from Chen Hong’s Divine Will Projection, still looking a bit dazed.

It wasn’t until he returned to the Divine Peak’s area that someone informed Xiao Mingyu of what had transpired.

Xiao Mingyu approached Zhang Ji with a complicated expression. He opened his mouth, but didn’t know what to say.

Zhang Ji was the first to speak, smiling. "Congratulations, Senior Brother Xiao."

"I am unworthy of this honor as the Qingcang Sect’s Merging Realm champion!" Xiao Mingyu said. "Junior Brother Li, you are the one who should have this honor..."

He wanted to give everything he had received to Zhang Ji, because he believed he didn’t deserve it.

It was also a way of thanking Zhang Ji.

Xiao Mingyu felt that for someone like Zhang Ji—who was normally so gentle and refined, and who always showed restraint when sparring with his sect brothers—to kill Ze Yao with a single strike, he must have been absolutely furious.

And the only possible reason for that anger was that he, Xiao Mingyu, had been harmed by Ze Yao.

As for being angry because Ze Yao had looked down on him?

That was the least likely possibility.

With Junior Brother Li’s magnanimity, he would never take a life over a few words of doubt or disrespect.

This strike could only have been to stand up for his fellow disciple.

"Say no more. Those are things you deserve, Senior Brother Xiao," Zhang Ji said, cutting Xiao Mingyu off before he could finish.

These words only served to further solidify Xiao Mingyu’s thoughts.

’For a good person like Junior Brother Li to be provoked by that Ze Yao into losing his composure like this, he truly deserved to die!’

.....

After exchanging some pleasantries with Xiao Mingyu, Zhang Ji had also managed to solidify his public persona.

Only now did he have the peace of mind to carefully consider what had just happened.

In that moment, he hadn’t just killed Ze Yao; he had also used the "Izakai Skill" to intercept a portion of his fortune and make it his own.

This was the true use of the "Izakai Skill".

The so-called increasing the probability of a certain event was just one of its manifested principles.

In reality, its core function was to intercept a sliver of heavenly fate.

When Ze Yao came into conflict with him, their karma began to entangle, and correspondingly, their fortunes began to clash and fluctuate.

By facing the tribulation head-on and killing him, or even just thwarting his fortune, Zhang Ji could directly devour a portion of it, instantly causing his own fortune to surge.

Ze Yao was no simple character. Zhang Ji could clearly feel that after devouring that portion of his fortune, his own had increased by at least ten percent.

Now, Zhang Ji had a strange feeling of everything going his way, as if many things would henceforth happen just as he wished.

And in fact, this was true. The inscription of the [Celestial Will Array Body] within him had sped up. Even if he wasn’t fully focused on it, his fortune would correct his path, preventing him from going astray—or if he did, it would be a deviation toward an even better direction.

’If the "Izakai Skill" is this useful, doesn’t that make all those geniuses out there prime tonics?’

Zhang Ji’s gaze swept over the upper section of the spectator stands. That area was filled with true disciples, and Ding Zhuoran was among them.

As Zhang Ji’s gaze passed over him, Ding Zhuoran felt a faint chill. Since he knew about the "Izakai Skill", his expression became extremely subtle.