Some days later, Gen found himself seated at a rough-hewn table in a roadside inn on the outskirts of the Four Kingdoms. A simple cup of tea, gone cold, sat before him. This time around, his face wasn't hidden. There was no need for it anymore. Buqu was gone, and it was clear to any who might have cared that Gen had never been a traitor, just a target. Yet, for several hours, he sat there, and no one recognized him.
*Yes,* he thought, a bitter taste in his mouth that had nothing to do with the tea. *My feat with the Divine General is traveling the world, but how many can really claim to have seen Gen Jiang with their own eyes?*
Most of those who had were dead.
He took another sip, the lukewarm liquid doing nothing to wash away the thought. He needed to keep his mind focused on the single most important objective: returning to the heart of the Four Kingdoms. But he wasn't planning to rush into Juo Si's territory without a thought. The Heaven Gate would be very different from what he remembered. If he were in Juo Si's place, he would have already stationed the Royal Guard. Gen still vividly remembered those ten cultivators in their imposing, unique armors. Them combined could clash with a Pillar—someone of Black-Green Wood's or even the Lost Triangle's caliber. That wasn't a place he wanted to crash into, even with his newfound confidence. He might not lose, but there were still too many unknown variables.
He stood, left a small pouch of Milky Stones on the table, and walked out into the dusty afternoon light.
The place wasn't a town, just an outpost—a cluster of buildings where long-distance travelers stopped to rest before pushing on. A few curious glances passed over him. Some were from women his age; a handsome young man with sharp features naturally drew attention. But mostly, it was his aura. He was barely aware of it, but his presence had changed after the fight with Buqu. He no longer felt like a talented youth walking among giants. He could now stand and measure himself against those so-called Pillars. Actually fighting them was another matter, but he wasn't that far off anymore. It was why his mere presence in the small outpost felt so quietly daunting.
On the side of the main road, a group of children played a rough game of chase. The leader of the group was ganged up on by the other two, tackled to the ground, and emerged with skinned knees. Instead of crying, he pointed a righteous finger.
"Now! I use the Dark Wheel and I become stronger than both of you! So you have to let me win!"
The other two laughed, shoving him playfully. "We both use the Wheel of Destiny and kick your ass! Haha!"
The boy on the ground scrambled up, snatched a stick, and chased his friends. One of them tripped on a stone and hit his head on the hard-packed earth. The boy who had fallen first now stood over him, placing a foot on his friend's chest playfully. "See? The Dark Wheel always wins! Just like Liang when he defeated that Divine General with the big axe!"
Gen's expression, though outwardly calm, tightened imperceptibly. This was the poison. Already sinking into the veins of the next generation. He took another look at the sky. Only three Damocles left. Yes. But would they have enough time before such childish games of "good vs. evil" turned into catastrophic, real-world destruction in a few years?
After a while, a youthful woman with bright, intelligent eyes approached him. She wore the practical clothes of a local guide and information broker. "Sir," she said with a practiced smile. "I found what you asked for. Would you like to go somewhere more private?"
Gen nodded without a second thought.
In a small, windowless room at the back of a larger supply shed, Gen waited patiently. The young woman—she couldn't be older than twenty—sat across from him, unrolling a large, detailed map of the central Four Kingdoms onto the table.
"I don't know what's causing such a ruckus," she began, her fingers tracing borders, "but the Four Kingdoms are upside down. I heard… King Juo Si has taken Lorel Feng captive. He's waiting for Tiang Feng himself to act out. Can you believe that? That man hasn't lifted a finger since Jiang died, even though he's so strong. It's not now that he's going to make a move."
Listening to her words, Gen's frown deepened slightly. But his mind, now sharpened by the revelation of Xian's grand design, pieced the puzzle together with ease.
Juo Si was under Xian. Their relationship had progressed. Now that Juo Si had what he wanted The united four kingdom and now Lorel , it was an unspoken link in a larger chain. One thing was sure: by forcing Tiang Feng to move, Xian could shatter the last public pillar of the orthodox Wheels of Destiny.
He smiled, a faint, grim twist of his lips. *The Tiang Feng I know will never move. Not even to save his own daughter.*
Furthermore, knowing Lorel, she would be safe. Other than the Royal Guard, there was really no one in Juo Si's employ who could pose a problem to someone of her current level.
The young guide, noticing his distant expression, clapped her hands softly. "Sir? What are you thinking about again? Is it that woman? If not, why would you be smiling so… brightly?" Her tone was half-curious, half-flirtatious, testing the waters with a client who felt both powerful and oddly detached.
Gen shook his head, amused by her boldness. "It is not important," he said, leaning closer to the map. "I am listening."
She pouted, a deliberate gesture. "No, I want to know the story. All of it. If not, you can just go back blind."
Gen took a faint look at her. Not a glare, but a simple, direct gaze. His eyes, however, held a profound depth she had never encountered. Though she was a low-level cultivator herself, the abyss in Gen's gaze made her tremble slightly, almost falling back in her chair. It was familiar to the feeling she'd gotten from a visiting school headmaster once, but infinitely deeper, heavier.
He turned, saying, "Thanks for the information. I will be leaving now."
Playing games would waste his time. He would rather barge in and break everything if necessary.
He turned his head fully to the wall, but his eyes seemed to pierce through it, into the vast distance. The heart of the Four Kingdoms was just a few days from here at his speed.
"I… I apologise, sir. I didn't mean to…" she stammered, the playful mask gone, replaced by genuine unease. "Wait! You need to know… King Juo Si's strength has already risen to a whole new level all these years. Many consider him to be on par with any Pillar."
"We know."
The words, spoken so flatly, caused Gen to pause. Then, something clicked in his mind with terrifying clarity.
*What if the plan wasn't just to move Tiang Feng? What if it was to let the two opposing schools of thought break each other?*
Gen had a terrifying premonition. King Juo Si had never given up on his dream of dominance. In the past, looking at his actions to reunite the Four Kingdoms, one could have called him a fool. Who would want a unified kingdom in a world about to be shattered by the Damocles?
*Unless… Juo Si had known about Xian's preparations. And had gambled his entire plan on that.*
It all made a sickening sense now. Xian needed the old order broken. Juo Si wanted the throne. They were using each other. And the battlefield for their convergence was the Heaven Gate, with Lorel as the bait and Tiang Feng's inaction as the catalyst for chaos.
"I need to hurry," Gen said, the words more for himself than for her.
He shot through the door, not even bothering with the window, becoming a beam of light that vanished down the road toward the eastern plains, leaving the girl staring at the empty space where he'd been, her heart pounding.
She bit her lip. Even now, she didn't know his name. Just that he was on a completely different level. *Why do I feel like he resembles… the Immortal Jiang?* She couldn't say why, but Jiang had also passed by this place once, years ago, on his way to search for the Lost Triangle Mountain. Back then, she had been a little girl, and her father had handled the business. She shook her head. There was no way she would see Gen Jiang and not recognize him. Such a figure would be too dazzling. This man was powerful, but there was nothing really extraordinary about him. He could even be considered… normal.
***
Few days later, Gen found himself at the edge of the Four Kingdoms. Precisely, at the foot of the Heaven Gate.
From the sky here, he could faintly see the high castle of King Juo Si in the distance. And at a conspicuously visible spot on the plains before it, a grand, new arena had been erected. It was massive, built of pale stone, clearly designed for spectacle.
When Gen saw it, he smiled, a cold, mirthless expression.
*He really wants us to crash into each other and get the spoils.*
Vile bastard.
How things had progressed was no longer just a question of power, but of philosophies clashing on a stage built by a puppeteer. The final act of Xian's play was beginning, and Gen had just walked onto the set.