Chapter 44 42, the gears of fate begin to turn
Her aura swept over like mountains collapsing into the sea.
Xu Yuan, however, remained as calm as usual.
Tian Liuli lost interest in talking, unwilling to entangle with him further.
She raised her hand, delivering an apparently ordinary palm strike.
A breeze blew, rustling the hair on his forehead.
Xu Yuan sighed. Though the plan had changed, it was still fine.
He was curious to know just how big the gap between him and her still was.
"Sword Control Technique."
He slapped his storage bag, drew his sword, positioned it horizontally, and swung—all in one fluid motion.
But the sound of the sword\'s edge rubbing against the leather had not even begun to ring out before it was shattered by the sudden onrush of her palm wind.
Tian Liuli\'s figure emerged before his eyes like a ghost, spiritual light swirling in her palm as though it was carved from jade.
Xu Yuan, heedless of consequences, swung his sword horizontally.
A light shone forth, tracing a curved arc forward.
Within the clear radiance of the sword light, the youth\'s features flickered in and out of sight.
The sword light shattered the palm wind, cut through the moonlight, like a wanderer who parted the winds and snows never to return.
Suddenly, the sword light was snuffed out by her palm, as if devoured by flames.
Without a sound, she caught his sword mere with her hand.
Xu Yuan knew that at this moment, Tian Liuli had not even begun to cultivate her Heavenly Emperor Liuli Body, which caused his brow to furrow slightly.
He had not expected that after such a protracted and arduous battle, her combat power would still remain so formidable.
Even more surprising was that her flesh, merely reinforced by spiritual power, could be so tough.
It seemed that his previous concern about being unable to break through her defenses was not unwarranted after all.
Tian Liuli\'s eyes smiled. Just as she reached out her other hand to grab him,
a clear shout rang by his ear.
Lin Qingque, who had been clutching Xu Yuan\'s arm all this time, finally made her move, with the formless and invisible Power of the Heart descending once more.
But this time, she wove it into a net of swords.
Tian Liuli changed her claw into a fist and punched upwards expressionlessly.
Hiss.
Faint white lines appeared on her fist, visible to the naked eye.
Lin Qingque\'s complexion turned pale once again.
Xu Yuan\'s other hand, the one not holding the sword, struck out fiercely.
But Tian Liuli remained nonchalant, even boldly thrusting out her chest.
Smack!
The mountains trembled, yet Xu Yuan\'s hand turned red.
At that moment, he felt as though he had slapped a snow-capped mountain.
"Don\'t feel good to squeeze?"
Watching him wince in pain, Tian Liuli jokingly said, as if they were just fooling around.
Lin Qingque clicked her tongue and her young face suddenly took on a serious expression, her eyes fiercely fixed on Tian Liuli.
Tian Liuli\'s face remained mostly expressionless, still wearing a look of sure victory.
It was clear she had already won.
While they were strategizing, she had been plotting as well.
She would make him understand that in the face of absolute strength, all plots and schemes were futile.
Only by following her would be the true correct path.
Lin Qingque\'s face tightened, the formless and shapeless Power of the Heart coalescing again. Using her will as the brush and the void as the canvas,
she shakily drew out a sword once more.
Only, this time, it was undoubtedly several times more formidable than the first.
Tian Liuli remained unflinching, but between the impetuous palms of her tender hands, she now held a longsword crimson as blood,
with Sword Fire blazing, like the rising sun leaping forth amidst the endless mountains.
Xu Yuan silently calculated the time, then heaved a light sigh after a while.
Unfortunately, although she locked onto Lin Qingque with that sword,
if he didn\'t help her, it would be very difficult for him to get through the remaining time.
Xu Yuan decided not to hold back any longer. The sword light lit up again, only this time, compared to the brilliant sword light against Tian Liuli like the sun reflecting off cold mountains, his sword seemed more like a dragon lurking in the abyss—obscure and without shine.
"Swift!"
Three swords sped forward and collided at the same time.
...
At the moment when the sword light bloomed, at the far end of the world.
An ancient city stood proudly atop a mountain peak, as if it trampled the whole world beneath its feet.
If Xu Yuan were here, he would recognize at a glance that this was the final chapter in the game and the very center of the world.
Dawn City, here lies the center of the world, the highest place on earth, and the first place to witness the sunrise.
On a high platform with a chill of morning dew, a girl in a long, aqua dress that flowed like a river stood quietly, gazing into the Azure Underworld, as if she could see the distant sword light blossoming far away.
Heaven\'s light seeped through the layers of clouds, and at a remote distance, a white line emerged, then, faster than the swiftest sword in the world by countless times, the light of dawn instantly filled the heavens and the earth.
It also fell upon her face, blessing her with a layer of divine radiance.
"Heh, have you noticed? Unfortunately, this isn\'t Liuli Heaven, not your territory."
"From now on, the wheels of fate... begin to turn, and everything will start to change completely."
She whispered softly.
"Your Highness."
Someone behind her asked softly, "Why did you go to such great lengths to have Heavenly Machine Tower notify the other sects about the descent of an Outer Domain Demon, yet only allow them to deploy young disciples to slaughter the demon?"
"Heh."
She let out a soft chuckle, turned around, and looked at the girl wearing a black veil, sitting in a wheelchair, and said, "Yan\'er, are you doubting me?"
"I wouldn\'t dare."
The girl known as Yan\'er shook her head and said, "I am only confused."
The girl in aqua pondered for a moment before saying, "Do you know the world has been through hundreds of cycles of reincarnation?"
"Yan\'er knows."
"Then do you also know that in these hundreds of cycles, there have only been one hundred and seven instances where the world came to an end, and out of those endings, the number of times he chose me was only nine?"
At this point, the girl\'s eyes narrowed, displaying an extremely dangerous expression, and her usually calm face seemed to show a hint of grinding her teeth in anger.
"If things continue as they have in the original story, how likely do you think he will choose me? No need for me to say, right?"
"Uh,"
Yan\'er obviously found it difficult to understand her words, or rather, she had no idea what she was talking about: "But, what does that have to do with what you are doing?"n/ô/vel/b//jn dot c//om
"Huh—"
The girl in aqua let out a breath, but changed the subject: "Then do you know, what kind of love is the most touching?"
"Yan\'er doesn\'t know."
"That is, even if you are the enemy of the entire world, I will still stand by your side."
The girl in aqua stated blandly.
"But,"
Yan\'er hesitated slightly before speaking, "Why would I be against the world?"
"It doesn\'t matter, I will make the world your enemy."
As she uttered those words, her profound gaze pierced through Yan\'er and settled on a distant place far behind her, as if she were speaking to another person altogether.
...
"I won."
Tian Liuli stood in front of the two people lying on the ground and stated matter-of-factly.
Even though her dress was slightly dirty and her hair slightly disheveled, she still couldn\'t hide her peerless elegance.
Her eyes revealed a sense of joy.
"Is that so?"
However, Xu Yuan, who was too weak to fight any longer, suddenly lifted his head and revealed a faint smile.
At the same time, the heavenly light that reflected upon the girl in aqua\'s face also happened to fall on his, making it seem like a dream, like an illusion.