Chapter 1735: Slaying the Life Master

It's good to have ambitions, but things don't always go as planned.

All those who manage to rise from obscurity with "Return to Truth" are formidable individuals.

Zhang Fan was able to successfully kill Lin Fan entirely due to the power of his divine abilities. However, in a life-or-death struggle, divine abilities are only one contributing factor, not the whole picture.

After an unexpected escape by an opponent in a previous encounter, his unique techniques, learned from the Sanctuary World, spread far and wide across the mountains and seas.

Now, everyone knows he possesses great divine abilities like "Hooked One's Wish," "Life-Death Separation," and "Fate Devourer." They become wary from a distance and he often faces attacks from multiple opponents.

In contrast, Zhang Fan often knows nothing about others who also possess "Return to Truth."

This puts him at a significant disadvantage.

"Damn it, I should have been more ruthless back then!"

Thinking of this, Zhang Fan was filled with deep regret. Yet, he couldn't entirely blame himself.

The person named Zhou Fan was remarkably similar to him, almost identical. Even when very close, they could subtly sense each other's thoughts, as if they were one person.

When Zhou Fan's soul was on the verge of annihilation, Zhang Fan felt as if he were experiencing it himself.

Horrified and despairing, he simultaneously felt a pang of pity, a sense of "pity me."

Zhang Fan's mind was shaken, and his extermination move involuntarily halted. Zhou Fan, seizing the moment of his daze, broke free and fled at light speed.

"Just you wait! I'll have my revenge!"

The opponent's voice, full of resentment, still echoed in his ears. At that time, Zhang Fan would never have imagined how much trouble this desperate fugitive would cause him.

"Fortunately, I still have a trump card, 'Reincarnation Annihilation,' which I've never used. Perhaps it can serve as a last-ditch effort."

"However, no matter how strong it is, it can't withstand such a continuous siege. I can only hide for now."

"But hiding like this isn't a long-term solution. Others will find me eventually."

Methods of transformation and concealment are effective for other cultivators. However, for "Children of Destiny" who also possess "Return to Truth," they are largely ineffective. "Children of Destiny" is a general term for all cultivators carrying "Return to Truth." No one knows who first coined the term, but with the True-False Grand Dao within them, they are indeed worthy of being called Children of Destiny. Everyone found the name fitting, so it became the accepted term.

The moment two Children of Destiny meet, even from a great distance, the similarity of their "Return to Truth" and souls causes them to immediately sense each other.

What frustrated Zhang Fan even more was that Zhou Fan, using some unknown method, seemed to have directly publicized his identity as "Zhang Fan" among all Children of Destiny.

Whenever other Children of Destiny encountered him, even if they had never met or heard of Zhang Fan before, all information about him would spontaneously appear in their minds within moments.

Moreover, this shared knowledge seemed to be collectively maintained and constantly updated.

Initially, Zhang Fan didn't realize this. In a deathmatch, his "Hooked One's Wish" and "Life-Death Separation" abilities were successively countered by his opponent, putting him at a disadvantage. He then managed to turn the tide by using "Fate Devourer" for the first time, killing his opponent. Zhang Fan was certain he had thoroughly destroyed all traces and cleared several surrounding possibilities, leaving no witnesses.

However, when he later encountered other Children of Destiny, they were still wary of "Fate Devourer." They carried defiled objects to corrupt their own fate, thus countering Zhang Fan's divine ability.

This caused Zhang Fan to suffer a severe loss, and his injuries have not yet fully recovered.

For now, he can only temporarily retreat to a mundane human realm, drawing in the fortune of living beings to slowly recover.

"This publicized knowledge must be Zhou Fan's doing."

"This knowledge only exists among the Children of Destiny and does not affect other cultivators." Zhang Fan had confirmed this through extensive soul-searching.

"It must be that he exploited some shared characteristic among us. This characteristic might be the fundamental reason we all carry 'Return to Truth.' It might even be connected to the entire conspiracy behind the scenes..."

After realizing this, Zhang Fan was startled to discover how little he truly knew about himself.

"Where does 'Return to Truth' come from? And where do I come from?"

Zhang Fan forgot his former ambitions and the dangers lurking outside. He immersed himself in his inner world, seeking answers to these questions.

To perceive the heart and illuminate one's nature, one must introspect.

For others, this might be extremely difficult. But for Zhang Fan, for some reason, it was unusually easy.

Zhang Fan vaguely sensed it might be related to his time spent in the Sanctuary World. "There, heaven and earth naturally grew without limit, and all beings had no fear of aging. There must have been the protection of the Grand Dao of Longevity."

"Moreover, I lived there for a long time and rarely encountered conflict or slaughter. It must have been some kind of Grand Dao power, subtly transforming and nurturing the dispositions of all beings."

Although not much time had actually passed since he left, Zhang Fan, having successively experienced one life-or-death struggle after another, had already undergone a transformation. Many things he had taken for granted in the past now seemed wrong upon reflection.

His longing for the "novice village" existed for only a moment in his mind.

Zhang Fan's thoughts became deeply immersed, as if he were directly confronting his own soul.

It was radiant and translucent, as if embodying all the wonders of the world. Yet, it seemed to have no essential difference from the countless beings in the mountains and seas.

"Where is the connection?"

Zhang Fan tried to examine himself from an outsider's perspective.

In an instant, he seemed to split into two.

One returned to his body, while the other floated outside, observing from a distance.

Slowly, Zhang Fan had an epiphany.

"All those who are Fan, Zhang Fan. All return to you."

"All those who are I. All return to me."

As he inexplicably spoke, a transparent white light seemed to emanate from the observing self.

It returned to the seated "Zhang Fan" body.

At this moment, Zhang Fan seemed to escape the fate of a Child of Destiny, gaining the ability to observe himself from an "outsider's" perspective.

A thin line, or countless thin lines representing destiny, extended from his body.

Connecting to countless different corners of the mountains and seas.

And beyond the mountains and seas... in that unknowable place, all these lines converged into a single point!

The glimpse lasted only an instant before Zhang Fan was pulled back by a powerful gravitational force emanating from his main body.

He spat out a mouthful of blood.

Recklessly moving his primordial soul, the severity of this injury far exceeded Zhang Fan's expectations. He almost failed to maintain his Transcendence realm, nearly falling back to the nameless realm.

Fortunately, it was all worth it.

In that fleeting glimpse, Zhang Fan not only saw a way to avoid the publicized knowledge but also perceived the hidden force manipulating all Children of Destiny!

"Unfortunately, I only know how to crack the publicized knowledge, but not how to use this divine ability. Otherwise, I would directly expose the hidden force to everyone, and we could all attack it together..."

Zhang Fan's expression kept changing.

Unbeknownst to him, his thoughts suddenly froze at this moment.

A blurry figure, crossing infinite time and space in that instant, appeared before him.

It was "Return to Truth"!

As the orchestrator of Li Fan's plan, everything projected into the various divine bodies was under its control.

All actions, and even thoughts, could not escape its perception.

Therefore, the moment Zhang Fan subtly showed signs of losing control, it made its move.

"Return to Truth" had not anticipated that the connection between the various God-Slaying divine bodies could be seen through so quickly.

The power that caused Zhang Fan to detach from himself seemed to still linger in the air.

"Return to Truth" gazed for a moment, then instantly understood.

"Slaying the Lord of Fate." It then looked towards the location of the various God-Becoming Guests.

Without causing any ripple or disturbance, the God-Becoming Guests and the Sanctuary Worlds they had created silently vanished from the mountains and seas ahead of schedule.

Then, "Return to Truth" looked at the frozen Zhang Fan, but was momentarily caught in hesitation.

Although this "Transformation of the Gods" seemed to be out of control, who could guarantee that it wasn't part of the intended variables?

Just as "Return to Truth" hesitated, Li Fan's faint voice suddenly emerged.

"If it is a variable, then it has meaning."

"Let's see how far he can go."

The voice echoed continuously, and "Return to Truth"'s figure had already vanished, returning to its place.

"Everyone attacks together, capturing the mastermind alive — wouldn't that be wonderful?" Zhang Fan's thoughts resumed flowing.

From beginning to end, he had no awareness of "Return to Truth"'s arrival or how close he was to death.

After recovering slightly from his injuries, Zhang Fan began to savor the divine ability he had just comprehended, which could avoid the influence of publicized knowledge.

"That feeling must have originated from the butcher who occasionally processed the Angler's catches."

The Angler of Mountains and Seas didn't release all the fish he caught.

In rare instances, when he found a satisfying collectible, he would keep it with him to admire, much like that stone slab.

Before carrying it, he would often hand it over to a disheveled butcher for processing.

Only after the butcher's knife fell would the Angler feel at ease putting the collectible away.

"It's so obvious that he's no ordinary cultivator. Yet, before this, I had always instinctively overlooked him."

"Such power..." Zhang Fan was secretly startled. Once the image of the butcher appeared in his mind, his feeling for that path became even stronger.

The clean, sharp glint of the blade continuously flashed in Zhang Fan's mind.

Slowly, he also followed suit, striking out with a blade in mid-air.

As if a single strand of hair, it fell in response.

Then thousands upon thousands, like snowflakes falling from the sky, drifted down.

At the same time, countless blood marks appeared on Zhang Fan's body, the price for severing his connection to the Children of Destiny.

But Zhang Fan, instead of being alarmed, was delighted, an irrepressible smile appearing on his lips.

"Life-Slaying Blade, what a fitting name!"

Severing shackles, cutting off all destiny.

With one strike, all bonds were gone.

The effect of the publicized knowledge slowly vanished. The dark cloud that had long hovered over Zhang Fan's head seemed to finally dissipate.

An unprecedented sense of security enveloped his heart.

Zhang Fan drifted into a deep sleep.

He awoke to find himself alive and well, with all his injuries fully recovered.

"If I get the chance, I must return and properly thank those seniors," Zhang Fan thought to himself.

He clearly knew that his ability to escape the destined fate of a Child of Destiny wasn't due to his being special, but entirely owed to the subtle, continuous care of powerful beings, including the Angler.

"I just don't know what realms they are in."

"Could they all be the so-called Sages of Mountains and Seas?"

As Zhang Fan pondered, he continued to sever all remaining connections. When only a single thin line remained, the Life-Slaying Blade hesitated, unable to fall.

The moment the blade's gleam began to rise, an inexpressible terror arose in Zhang Fan's heart.

It felt as if his life would end the moment that thread snapped.

After a long hesitation, Zhang Fan ultimately chose to trust his intuition and did not force the strike.

"It's not time yet."

"Perhaps only when I attain the path of a Sage can this blade truly fall," Zhang Fan mused, as if enlightened.

"Speaking of which, could it be that I truly have extraordinary talent? This Life-Slaying Blade ability is profound and mysterious, yet I comprehended it so smoothly, and its use is becoming increasingly natural. And my other divine abilities..."

Zhang Fan was baffled, eventually attributing it to the secret cultivation by the powerful beings.

He would never have imagined that all the God-Becoming Guests, including the Angler, had now been completely erased by "Return to Truth."

The various Grand Daos were temporarily without owners.

As the only one currently connected to these Grand Daos in the mountains and seas, he could be said to have inherited the full legacy of the God-Becoming Guests. Naturally, his comprehension was unusually smooth.

Zhang Fan, however, did not consider this much.

Now, his mind was entirely focused on avenging himself against Zhou Fan.

"Now, it's my turn to hide in the dark. I hope I don't catch you too easily."

Zhang Fan's eyes narrowed slightly, a cold glint flashing.

Zhou Fan's publicized knowledge ability had truly caused him great harm.

If he didn't avenge this, would he even be human?

Soon, Zhang Fan left the mundane human realm where he had been healing and secretly began searching for his opponent's traces.

But Zhou Fan was indeed cautious. Relying on the mutual sensing of "Return to Truth," Zhang Fan had already eliminated nearly a hundred Children of Destiny, yet he still hadn't found Zhou Fan's whereabouts.

With the number of Children of Destiny significantly decreasing in a short period, everyone else had realized something was amiss.

They all stopped flaunting themselves and hid away for a time.

This further thwarted Zhang Fan's quest for revenge.

The turbulent mountains and seas surprisingly fell into an eerie calm.

After painstakingly finding and eliminating another Child of Destiny, Zhang Fan was suddenly startled.

"Strange, too many have disappeared in such a short time."

"Something doesn't add up..."

"Could it be that someone else, besides me, is hunting Children of Destiny?"

His heart suddenly skipped a beat, as if confirming this suspicion.

Zhang Fan's expression involuntarily grew stern.

"Who could it be?"

Zhang Fan was not surprised by this.

After all, the number of Children of Destiny appearing in a short time was indeed quite large.

They attacked each other, considering other powerful beings in the mountains and seas to be nothing.

Furthermore, as all Children of Destiny carried the supreme treasure "Return to Truth," it was inevitable that others would covet them.

"Those with the power and motive should be the Sages of Mountains and Seas."

Once, Zhang Fan had wanted to cross the Dao Annihilation to reach the so-called Other Shore and the Saint Dynasty, to behold the demeanor of the Sages.

Now, he wanted to avoid them at all costs.

"I am strong enough now. With divine abilities in hand, annihilating Transcendent cultivators is like slaughtering chickens and dogs."

"Yet, I am not strong enough. Even without truly fighting a Sage, I know my limits. At this moment, I am definitely no match for a Sage-realm opponent."

"Breaking through in a short time is hopeless. To protect myself, I still have to rely on the transformation of True and False!"

After this period of slaughter, the True-False Grand Dao that Zhang Fan had absorbed and accumulated was quite substantial.