At this very moment, suspended beyond the sky between the Endless Sea and Xiematai, a few people stood atop the colossal, illusory form of Xuan Niao, anxiously looking down at the transformations happening within the light.

Kua Fu's patience was running out. He downed another whole can of beer in one gulp, scratched his head, and looked toward Xuan Niao. "Can it be done?"

"How would I know?" Xuan Niao answered without raising his head, brows furrowed, as if he had already glimpsed some ominous sign.

Kua Fu was dumbfounded. "Isn't this your arrangement?"

The old man glanced back at him. "It should be said, this is her own choice."

"..." Kua Fu didn't know what to say. "But there should be some kind of sign, right? You didn't see anything?"

"No. Using the Eye of Stars, I saw it very clearly—certain death."

Xuan Niao raised his hand, twiddled the few white hairs on his chin, and sighed helplessly. "This is a calamity destined in her fate—unavoidable, inescapable. And who knows... perhaps by choosing to face it head-on, she can at least keep the initiative.

What happens next depends on her determination and luck. If she makes it through, the world will be her oyster. If not, then it's ashes to ashes, dust to dust.

I can only give her the opportunity. Whether she can defy fate is up to her."

"...Is there really no way?" Kua Fu asked.

"Of course, there is."

Xuan Niao pointed towards the venue. "See the Little Brag who just left the stage? Yes, Huai Shi. That kid has unbelievably tremendous luck. He's a natural-born prodigy, destined to either be immortalized in history or infamous for eternity.

If Xue Ya truly wants a helping hand, just having him around would instantly increase her chances of success by ten percent. The price, however, is that she'll become entangled with him.

A better way would be to find Bai Ze. With Bai Ze around, misfortune turns to blessing, disaster to good fortune, and all worries cease. As long as Xue Ya doesn't stray too far from Bai Ze, that fatal calamity will never befall her.

But you see, she didn't even ask for help in the end, did she?"

In Xuan Niao's opinion, her decision wasn't wrong; after all, it's better to rely on oneself than on others.

Luck, ultimately, has its limits. Bai Ze knows her gift spoils the younger generation too easily, which is why she's always disappearing. Of course, part of it is because she's lazy and constantly scheming how to travel on the public dime.

And as for Huai Shi... if she gets too close, she might get tangled in the chaotic mess of red threads that boy trails behind him..."

Thinking of this, he suddenly turned his head and earnestly admonished, "Xiao Bai, you should keep your distance from scumbags in the future, understand?"

"Ah?"

The White Emperor's Son looked up, not quite understanding.

"Never mind, forget I said anything..." Xuan Niao rubbed his temples tiredly. "Anyway, with the Phoenix's Sky's Command ensuring all tribulations are easily overcome, nothing truly serious will happen."

Was he worrying too much?

It was a problem he had always tried to avoid. After becoming Xuan Niao, he gained the Eye of Stars, an ability to perceive the Sky's Command. This, coupled with his inherently meticulous and steady style, meant he had always been successful, with everything going smoothly.

But at the same time, was he being too cautious, too rigid?

After all, elders can't walk every path for their children... Who is born wanting to be a puppet, unquestioningly doing as others dictate?

Even if this path seemed like a dead end to Xuan Niao, if she wanted to try it, could he really keep her tethered every day?

If she wanted to go, then let her.

At least with him around, she wouldn't be utterly and hopelessly doomed.

If it came to it, he would just arrange for her to switch paths. There were fourteen overt paths of ascension in the Dongxia Genealogy, plus four hidden ones. There was plenty of room for her to display her talents.

But, if possible, who would want their own children to experience failure?

The rebellious phase is really too much trouble.

Xuan Niao sighed helplessly. He looked at the teenage girl beside him, who he figured was fast approaching her rebellious phase, and grew even more worried.

"Someone is coming."

In the silence, the White Emperor's Son suddenly looked up, gazing into the distance.

In the Sky Dome, at the edge of the Endless Sea, amidst the dark flashes of lightning and peals of thunder, a moist monsoon wind began to blow.

A storm was coming.

「Twenty minutes earlier.」

In Yingzhou, Ryukyu, under what could only be described as a glorious afternoon sun, waves rolled onto the golden beach.

Outside the tavern, the faint sounds of teenage girls laughing and playing drifted from the distant beach, a lively scene bustling with people. Yet inside the shabby-looking tavern, it was silent.

So silent that even the dust motes dancing in the slanting afternoon sunlight seemed to have a voice.

"What a great sun, isn't it, customer?"

With a creak of the wooden floorboards, the burly bar owner returned, a fishing rod on his shoulder. He casually tossed his fish basket aside and looked up at the shadow in the corner.

Within the shadow, the Left Minister stood respectfully, head bowed, waiting.

"What will you have?" the owner asked, glancing at him. He rolled up the sleeves of his brightly patterned shirt, revealing hairy arms, hung his beach hat on a coat rack, and walked to the bar.

The Left Minister thought for a moment. "Plain water will do."

"We don't sell that sort of thing here."

The owner scoffed, then with a flick of his head, bit open the whiskey bottle. He grabbed a large chunk of ice from the refrigerator, broke off a piece, and dropped it into a glass as big as his head. Then, GLUG GLUG GLUG, he filled it to the brim.

THUD!

He slammed the glass down in front of the Left Minister. "There you go. America's exclusive, real-man whiskey. The perfect cure for Yingzhou sissies."

Next chapter will be updated first on this website. Come back and continue reading tomorrow, everyone!

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know < report chapter > so we can fix it as soon as possible.