Chapter 136

Chapter 136: The Destiny Ordained

"Disciple Di Wuyou, paying respects to master."

In a daze, a youthful voice sounded beside Withered Wood Daoist’s ear; the Dao King before him seemed no longer the powerful being who ruled over the heavens and earth, but a young boy with pigtails, wearing ragged hemp clothes.

That was the scene twenty thousand years ago when Withered Wood Daoist took Dao King as disciple.

Twenty thousand years had passed; the Change of the World had occurred, and people were no longer the same.

Beside him, Fuyuan, the woman in red, and five other men and women stared at Dao King on the ground; all felt a shiver of terror and anger.

Having committed the evil deed of slaying his master to seize power, how could he still dare to call himself the master’s disciple?

"You have long ceased to be this old man’s disciple."

Withered Wood Daoist closed his eyes, not looking at him, his expression calm.

"But in my disciple’s heart, the master will always be the disciple’s master." Dao King looked at Withered Wood Daoist, his eyes sincere and without falsehood, as though the one who had slain his master were not him.

"In my life, there have been many tribulations, but all ended safely. Yet I never imagined that a young boy I personally accepted would become the tribulation I could not escape."

Withered Wood Daoist opened his eyes, his gaze murky. "Is it those above who wanted to kill me?"

Dao King nodded.

"Master, chaotic times are coming. They need a capable person to clear away obstacles in the lower realm. Your disposition is moderate, unsuited to being that blade."

"Disciple can do it."

"Even so, you did not have to kill the master!" Fuyuan shouted in rage, roaring and asking, "Why must you bring him to death?"

Glancing at Fuyuan, whom he nominally considered his junior brother.

Dao King, with no trace of emotion in his eyes, said lightly, "On the path of power, there can be no obstacles. So-called abdication will only breed more disasters."

"If master did not die, I could not consolidate power."

"Nowadays, Taihao Heavenly Sect, in the entire Spirit Realm, is already the topmost existence. With one word, I can stir winds and rain; with one stomp, I can make the Spirit Realm tremble."

"Only I can achieve all this."

Withered Wood Daoist said no more.

He admitted Dao King’s talent and wisdom, and further admired his methods and strategies.

Yet one thing he had not foreseen was that Dao King was so obstinate in wanting to kill him.

"Since you have already gained power, why will you not spare the master?" Fuyuan launched another deep interrogation.

Dao King gave a light laugh, his gaze falling on Withered Wood Daoist. "Since I have already borne the reputation of slaying my master to seize power, why not carry it through to the end?"

"You… You are simply insane!"

The woman in red pointed at Dao King, trembling with anger all over.

Bang!

An explosion sounded, the woman in red’s finger burst apart, but from start to finish, Dao King made no move.

The woman wailed piercingly; she was a peak of quasi-emperor level expert, but no matter how she mobilized her magic power, she could not make the severed finger regrow.

"The only person here who can curse me is only master."

Dao King’s eyes turned utterly icy. "A mere quasi-emperor dares to disrespect me?"

"Second Junior Sister!" Fuyuan rushed before the woman in red, warily watching Dao King.

"Can you spare them?"

Withered Wood Daoist spoke, his heart cold as dead water.

"Master, you know me well."

Dao King flashed a toothy grin, revealing a hint of bloodthirsty killing intent. "Leaving roots will allow regrowth. I never leave even a whisper of potential trouble behind."

"If you spare them," Withered Wood Daoist said slowly, "I won’t resist. Deal with me as you will."

"Master!"

Fuyuan and the others knelt together on the ground, voices choked with tears. "So long as you live, Master, we disciples die without regret. Please, do not be burdened by thoughts of our lives or deaths."

Withered Wood Daoist’s cultivation was at Mid-stage Emperor Venerable. If he fought with everything he had, there might have been a chance to escape Dao King’s grasp.

Dao King chuckled dismissively. "Master, my true strength you understand all too well. Even if you strike at me, it won’t change the inevitable outcome."

"So then, why would I leave future trouble?"

"Are you truly resolved to be this ruthless?!"

Withered Wood Daoist roared in fury at Dao King.

"Over a hundred thousand years of master-disciple bonds! Have you forgotten all of it?"

"I remember."

Dao King took a deep breath. "Precisely because of that memory, I came personally to send you on your final journey."

"I’ll fight you to the death!"

The youngest disciple, also at the peak of quasi-emperor level, flipped his palm. A golden divine wheel materialized, its surface swirling with divine patterns – unmistakably an imperial weapon.

He channeled power into the weapon. Deities manifested, seated in the void, three hundred and sixty-five in number.

"Myriad Gods Dharma Wheel!"

His battle cry shook the void itself.

The three hundred and sixty-five deities struck down with their palms simultaneously. The Withered Wood Great Hall shattered instantly, consumed by blinding golden light that extinguished everything, hurtling towards Dao King.

"Seventh Junior Brother!"

Fuyuan’s expression underwent a great change, stricken with profound grief. He knew this was suicide.

"Courage is commendable."

Dao King smiled faintly. With a sweep of his enormous hand, casually, as if turning a page in a book, the entire world seemed to refresh. The three hundred and sixty-five deities vanished without a trace. The Seventh Junior Brother was utterly gone.

Dead. Completely erased.

Horror seized them all. They couldn’t even comprehend Dao King’s power.

"A pity he was too weak."

Dao King sighed. "Which other junior brothers or sisters wish to experience my divine might?"

The remaining six disciples were trembling with fear.

A deep-seated despair enveloped them thoroughly.

At this moment, the disciples of the Withered Wood Sect all sensed a terrifying aura reviving, as a net woven by Dao King began to manifest little by little.

Countless divine patterns emerged in the sky; each divine pattern resembled a magical artifact, hanging in the air.

Boundless divine light bloomed, and it seemed as if heaven and earth were being refined.

Countless people panicked.

One after another, disciples ran for their lives within the Withered Wood Sect, but not a single one managed to escape.

They were completely trapped.

Dao King intended not only to kill Withered Wood Daoist and his seven junior brothers and sisters, but also to bury with his own hands the sect built by Withered Wood Daoist, along with its many disciples.

Withered Wood Daoist’s body trembled.

Dao King’s actions were utterly outrageous.

"It’s a pity that this old fool was blind, personally teaching out a rebellious disciple," Withered Wood Daoist said, his lips trembling with both anger and self-mockery.

"I never imagined that the calamity spoken of by my master would actually be created by my own hands…"

"Ultimately, I cannot escape destiny."

Withered Wood Daoist looked up at the sky and sighed deeply.

Master?

Dao King frowned; Withered Wood Daoist’s master was the previous generation’s Sect Master of Taihao Heavenly Sect, but he had already perished eight hundred thousand years ago.

The entire Spirit Realm witnessed his passing.

He could not possibly still be alive.

Then who was the master that Withered Wood Daoist spoke of?

"Could it be that it was an aphorism left by the grandmaster?"

Dao King did not ponder it further.

No matter how clever he was, he could not imagine that Withered Wood Daoist’s master was someone else.

"Nevertheless, even in death, this old one will make you pay a price."

Withered Wood Daoist’s eyes focused intently, his killing intent erupting.

A vast aura surged from his body.

The heavy imperial might oppressed the worlds descending from the Heavens.

The Great Dao of heaven and earth regarded me as supreme.

Dao King smiled.

"Ninety thousand years ago, I killed you by relying on a sneak attack."

Dao King murmured, "Ninety thousand years later, you still stand in place, while I have reached the peak of the world."

He once again bowed his head to Withered Wood Daoist.

"Master, disciple sends you on your way."