Chapter 774: Calculating the Course of Fate

Chen Hao's jaw clenched in anger.

“Yuheng City has painstakingly developed twelve different tortures. If you can endure even three of them, I’ll acknowledge you as a real man.” He Lingchuan clapped his hands. “Alright, take him back!”

After witnessing such a vicious slaughter, the nearby merchants and travelers had only just recovered from their fright. They came forward one after another to offer their thanks.

He Lingchuan and his men then departed amid the crowd’s grateful farewells, escorting their prisoner and carrying the severed heads northward back to the city.

Only after they had gone did a white bird crawl out from the branches of a large tree beside the lotus pond. It poked its head out and watched the retreating backs of Yuheng City’s patrol guards before spreading its wings and taking flight.

It flew east toward Longchuan, and with it, trouble followed.

* * *

Yuheng City.

After returning to the government office, He Lingchuan changed out of his bloodstained clothes and wiped the sweat from his brow.

This damned weather. It isn't even the seventh month yet, but it's already this damn hot!

He had barely sat down and drunk a cup of water when Wen Daolun arrived.

“I heard you caught a large fish. Congratulations! Commander He’s efforts over the past half month have not gone to waste.”

“Fushan Lie highly values Chen Hao. Over the last two months, he led the West Ji Puppet Army in killing and robbing, causing us no small amount of trouble.” He Lingchuan tilted his neck to one side, producing a couple of crisp cracks. “Capturing him is the same as severing one of Fushan Lie’s arms. I’ve already arranged for his interrogation.”

“Fushan Lie is a fierce general of Lingxu City, yet he's actually come to Longchuan to stir up trouble?” Wen Daolun frowned. “It seems Beijia has never truly felt at ease about Panlong City.”

With Beijia interfering behind the scenes, the Longchuan water bandits could no longer be treated as a minor local nuisance.

He Lingchuan rubbed his chin. “Now that Chen Hao has been captured, I’ve framed the Qiuhua Gang for leaking the information to us. We’ll see whether Fushan Lie can swallow that humiliation. If he chooses to endure it, I’ll cut off Chen Hao’s head and send it to him.”

Wen Daolun could not help but laugh. Commander He truly possesses remarkable talent at driving people slowly and methodically insane.

After thinking for a moment, He Lingchuan suddenly asked, “Master Wen, I have a question. I once asked you to examine my fate. Can someone truly accomplished in the arts of destiny accurately predict their own future?”

Wen Daolun answered without hesitation, “No one can predict it with complete accuracy. The future is inherently blurred. It is not laid out openly from beginning to end for anyone to see. The so-called mastery of fate simply means identifying the most likely outcome from among countless possibilities. Yet when a person tries to calculate their own destiny, even that most likely outcome becomes difficult to identify correctly.”

Is it because they can no longer remain objective? He Lingchuan hesitated briefly before asking, “What if it were a god who governed fate? Could such a god accurately calculate its own destiny?”

“A god of fate?” Wen Daolun fell into thought. “Lady Mitian once said that the divine realm had three ancient gods, one of whom governed fate. Yet all three ancient gods eventually perished. Not one was spared. Even the so-called god of fate could not escape the final end written by fate itself. For that reason, I do not believe the gods can accurately determine their own destinies.”

“The gods’ methods of calculation may differ from ours, but I believe all great paths ultimately converge. Whether one is human or god, none can escape these principles.” Wen Daolun paused before continuing, “Speaking of which, I’ve felt uneasy lately. I cast two divinations for myself, and neither produced an auspicious sign. One of them read, ‘the ugly is auspicious beneath the worthy.’ Yet I have no idea when or where it will come to pass. You see? One skilled at divination finds it hardest to divine for himself. This is a perfect example.”

He Lingchuan was slightly startled. “Why didn’t you tell me sooner? I’ll assign two more personal guards to you. Mm, I’ll transfer Hu Min to your side as well.”

Wen Daolun did not refuse. “Very well. I would also like to see whether this ill omen will come true again.”

He had said “again.”

He Lingchuan immediately thought of Wen Daolun’s son, Wen Xing.

Back then, Wen Daolun had also foreseen an ominous sign for himself. In the end, Wen Xing truly had died before both Wen Daolun and He Lingchuan.

Afraid that the memory would reopen an old wound, He Lingchuan swiftly changed the subject. “I have another question. Suppose someone merely prepares an operation in secret but has not yet carried it out. Could that preparation alone alter the course of their future fate?”

“No!” Wen Daolun’s answer was even more decisive. “Deeds, not thoughts, determine cause and effect. So long as you have not taken any action in reality, no matter what you plan or imagine, you will not disturb causality.”

A large weight immediately lifted from He Lingchuan’s heart. He thanked Wen Daolun at once.

In other words, so long as he did not make any major moves in the real world, it would be very difficult for Naluotian to calculate that his fate had changed.

Wen Daolun asked, “Commander He, is there some particular matter troubling you?”

“Nothing. I was merely interested in the subject.” He Lingchuan rose to his feet. “I’m going to see how the interrogation is going.”

* * *

The great river surged onward.

He Lingchuan, Dong Rui, Zhu Daniang, and the rest of the group finally reached the banks of the Han River.

Spring had returned to the mortal realm. The wildflowers along the riverbank were already in bloom, tiny and densely clustered, weaving an unattended carpet of color.

The river covered only half of its bed. Everywhere were long islands thick with woodland, broad expanses of level sand and flowing water, and gulls and egrets wheeling gracefully through the sky.

Wildness and tranquil beauty, vastness and delicate elegance—all blended here in perfect measure.

The Han River in early spring was gentle, nothing like the raging torrent it had been the previous summer. He Lingchuan even found the raised ground where the two armies had fought last year.

Back then, the place had been covered in rain, blood, and mud.

Now, the riverbanks were green.

All the savagery of war had been casually concealed beneath the newly sprouted grass and reeds.

He Lingchuan jumped down from the cliff ram and gently ran a hand over a large stone.

Marks from blades and axes remained on its surface. He had fought the enemy here, dodged two attacks, and cut down three Xun Province soldiers.

The memories remained vivid and distinct, as though everything had happened only yesterday.

Yet while the surroundings remained the same, the people had changed.

Compared to the previous summer, his state of mind, cultivation, and breadth of experience were now almost entirely different.

Everything had begun to change when he fell into the Han River.

He still remembered Wen Daolun’s words that had enlightened him: “When you encounter water, leave.”

From the lines left by the old turtle monster to the prophecy given to him by Venerable Muling, his destiny had moved from the known into the unknown—from a life supposedly fixed by Heaven into something obscured and impossible to unravel.

Even Venerable Muling could no longer calculate what He Lingchuan would encounter in the future or where his journey would ultimately end.

He would write his own ledger of life and death. That was what suited him best.

Qiu Hu watched him from the side and could not help but ask, “Were you present during the Battle of the Han River as well?”

He could understand the expression on He Lingchuan’s face. 𝒻𝑟ℯℯ

It held both remembrance and melancholy.

No one who had not personally experienced the events could have worn such an expression.

“I was.” He Lingchuan pointed toward the high ground. “Hong Chenglue attacked the Governor-General of Xia Province right there.”

Qiu Hu looked faintly surprised. “Beijia’s Qingwu General?”

“You know of him?”

“I’ve heard of him. Why was he here?” A general of Beijia had appeared on Yuan’s front line?

“He was handling official business and settling a personal grudge.”

At the time, Beijia had ordered Hong Chenglue to assist Nian Zanli secretly. That had been official business.

His wife, A’Jin, had been abducted by He Chunhua and ultimately taken poison to end her own life. That had created a personal blood feud between the two men.

By now, Hong Chenglue should already have reached Beijia’s eastern front.

Just as He Lingchuan rose, a figure suddenly darted out of the woods beside the riverbank, accompanied by a series of shrill chattering cries.

Qiu Hu stepped forward. A faint light flashed in his hand as he prepared to summon his bronze staff.

He Lingchuan, however, strode forward and laughed loudly. “Come!”

He spread his arms.

The creature leaped straight into his embrace.

The squirrel perched on He Lingchuan’s shoulder jumped in fright, only to realize that the newcomer was an ape wearing a bamboo hat.