Fu Xuan's objective was simple.
Knock the Stellaron away. Do not let Dan Shu use its power.
She knew that by doing this, it would be extremely difficult to explain things to Dan Shu.
Meanwhile, Phantylia, mingling with the crowd, watched the unexpected development.
She hadn't anticipated that someone would suddenly appear at this moment and try to make a move against Dan Shu.
'Oho, now this is going to be a good show!'
Dan Shu was also surprised that someone could interrupt her at such a critical moment.
She knew full well that many of the Disciples of Sanctus Medicus were actually Cloud Knights and members of the Realm-Keeping Commission, but she had already purged a wave of them before beginning her operation, converting them into ordinary Alchemy Commission workers.
"Dan Shu, stop! If you use the Stellaron's power, you'll die too!"
Fu Xuan no longer cared about hiding her identity.
Hearing the familiar yet distant voice, Dan Shu vaguely recalled hearing someone say something similar in the past.
As if roused to ferocity by the scent of blood, the Stellaron emitted a dazzling light, quietly hovering before Dan Shu.
"A long, long time ago, when I was still blind... back then, my friend Yufei was still alive, and I was just an ordinary alchemist."
"I vaguely remember talking to a Xianzhou native before I met Yufei."
"When my eyes were mentioned, I think she said something like this..."
"I don't remember the exact words, but I remember the meaning very clearly."
"She told me that the Xianzhou would find a way, that there would surely be a way to cure my heavenly-bestowed blindness. But what was the truth? After joining the Alchemy Commission, I learned I had been deceived."
"The only way to deal with this problem is to break through the Xianzhou's limitations on long life. And to do that, one must face the problem of the Mara-Struck. But once faced with the Mara-Struck, the Xianzhou naturally shrinks back to its old ways of 'do not touch the taboo'."
"Whoever dares to treat us becomes, in effect, an enemy of the Xianzhou."
Golden blood dripped from Dan Shu's hand to the ground. She once again seized the power of the Stellaron.
And this time, the Stellaron answered her call.
With this final push, Dan Shu made the final choice of her life.
There are many Lord Ravagers in this world, but Dan Shu would become the only one to actively seek her own destruction.
A golden gaze descended. In the clash of three wills, Dan Shu turned and threw herself into the embrace of Nanook, the Aeon of Destruction.
"It's a pity you're late. One step behind, always a step behind! Master Diviner of the Divination Commission, Fu Xuan! For years you have seen so many futures. I wonder, have you ever seen your own karmic fate clearly?!"
Fu Xuan stared blankly at Dan Shu. "You... you actually chose to align yourself with the Ruin Author...?"
Fu Xuan had thought Dan Shu would regain the favor of the Abundance, but the moment she touched the Stellaron, she was taken under Nanook's wing.
At this moment, Dan Shu no longer resembled her former self in any way. Even the faith in the Abundance she had upheld collapsed in an instant.
It was just as she had said.
The coming of Maitreya, the arrival of the Bright King.
She would become the sharpest, bloodiest blade to sever and destroy the Xianzhou of the past.
"Before the Pure Land is born, Maitreya will be responsible for cleansing all the bad karma outside of it."
"After the Pure Land is born, the Bright King will lead the people of the Xianzhou to that paradise of eternal peace."
"It's time to settle the score for the past mistakes of the Xianzhou people!"
Fu Xuan yelled in anger, "Are you all insane?! Is that damn Pure Land really so alluring?!"
Dan Shu's tone was calm, as if she weren't the one whose hand had just been pierced.
She asked, "Fu Xuan. Master Diviner Fu. The most talented diviner the Divination Commission has seen in centuries."
"Do you remember how you gained the power of your omniscient eye? To this day, you have yet to master the gift bestowed upon you by an Aeon. To this day, the Xianzhou still fears the blessings of Yaoshi. To this day, the Xianzhou still relies on the might of Lan."
"What gives you such arrogance?"
"If I don't rely on an Aeon to build a new Pure Land, am I supposed to rely on you?!"
"Then let me ask you!"
"Fu Xuan, what price must the Xianzhou pay in exchange for the faith of our Disciples of Sanctus Medicus and our pursuit of unending life?!"
Fu Xuan was momentarily speechless, unable to answer the question. Of course, she had no way to solve Dan Shu's suffering.
Only at this moment did she truly feel the omnipresent constraints and shackles.
It was different from using her omniscient eye, different from the results she got from divination.
Back then, while fate was ethereal in her mind, she had no concrete feeling of it; it was just a collection of symbols floating above the Matrix of Prescience.
But now, as she tried to abandon the path of divination and use all her strength to solve a problem, Fu Xuan truly understood the meaning of "When fortune smiles, the world lends its strength; when luck runs out, even heroes are not free."
As long as she couldn't resolve the conflict of faith within the Xianzhou, she was bound to one day struggle within this raging torrent of fate.
It was the Disciples of Sanctus Medicus who wanted to destroy the Ambrosial Arbor, yet Fu Xuan felt as if she was the one standing on the opposing side.
She even had a fleeting feeling that she might be the one doing something wrong.
'No, that's not right! This isn't the Xianzhou's fault...'
'How could it not be? Isn't it precisely because the Xianzhou has no way to deal with it that things have come to this?'
'How is that possible? Then what about my lifelong convictions? What about all the people who were experimented on?'
'Don't be foolish. As long as the various forms of suffering on the Xianzhou exist, don't you know how many people would willingly volunteer for those experiments?'
'What about the curse of long life? Are we supposed to just watch as we repeat the same mistakes after lifting the taboo?'
'Is it really repeating the same mistakes? It's just trading the pain of eternal life for the pain of a centuries-long life. What is lost will still be lost; it won't be lessened just because you take a step back.'
[Wake up, wake up...]
[Fu Xuan, Fu Xuan, our backup is here.]
[What should we do? Slap her?]
[Let me try... Master Diviner, Master Diviner, Qingque is playing Celestial Jade again!]
"Damn it, Qingque is slacking off again! Where is she?!"
Fu Xuan's eyes shot open to find herself lying unconscious on the ground.
And beside her was Elysia, who had been following her all along.
Elysia finally let out a sigh of relief.
She had been following Fu Xuan to protect her. Who would have thought the power of an Emanator would be this immense?
She was just a weak woman who had given up her Herrscher identity; how could she possibly compare to a lunatic playing with a nuclear bomb, ready for self-detonation?
"Where... where am I?"
In her daze, Fu Xuan thought she saw Jing Yuan, along with his disciple, Yanqing.
There were also three strangers: an adult man with two young women.
Hazily, Fu Xuan vaguely recalled that she had been trying to stop Dan Shu.
"Dan Shu?! Where's Dan Shu?" Fu Xuan asked anxiously.
Jing Yuan replied helplessly, "She has already broken the seal and gone to the Ambrosial Arbor."