Chapter 46: Shifts in the Heavenly Dao

"On the third day of the second month of the third year of the Xianheng era, there was a meteor that sounded like thunder." — *Old Book of Tang: Astronomy*

The early days of the second month still held a lingering chill in the Hedong Circuit. Amidst the mountains, the tender shoots of early spring had only just broken through the branches.

A flash of sword light flickered, accompanied by the faint rumble of collapsing rock, causing the branches to sway in the sudden gust of wind.

Before the crumbling cliff, Zhou Wuqing watched as the golden dragon of destiny dissipated upon hitting the ground. He sheathed his sword with one hand and remarked casually to Yuan Tiangang, who stood beside him, "Next."

Yuan Tiangang gazed toward the heavens. "Seven hundred miles to the north, in the region of Wenshui. This should be the last one."

Zhou Wuqing nodded, sprang from the ground, and stepped onto the clouds side-by-side with Yuan Tiangang, heading north.

Since embarking on this journey to sever the dragon veins, the two had been traveling together for three months. From Guanzhong to Hedong, they had traversed almost the entire central region of Tang territory, cutting down thirty-two dragon veins of varying sizes.

Most of these three months had been spent on the road; the time actually spent in combat was minimal. The reason was simple: most of the golden dragons of destiny would be struck down by Zhou Wuqing the moment they manifested. Having seen such scenes so often, they had long since become accustomed to it.

"Does severing these dragon veins truly allow the Tang court to defy heaven and change its fate?" Zhou Wuqing asked nonchalantly as they traveled toward the next vein.

After three months of companionship, chatting along the way had become routine. In his view, although Yuan Tiangang liked to speak in riddles, he had walked the human world for many years and was undeniably knowledgeable; their conversations kept the journey from being dull.

"Fate is predetermined by the Heavenly Dao. Through ordinary human effort, one can only mitigate it, never reverse it," Yuan Tiangang replied. "The dragon veins of the four seas and the destiny of the Great Tang are like weeds and garden flowers. Clearing the weeds from the garden can indeed keep the flowers healthy, but whether those flowers will eventually bloom, and what kind of flowers they will be, is governed by the Heavenly Dao."

"Flowers and weeds—that sounds quite mystical," Zhou Wuqing cast a sidelong glance at him. "If fate is already set, then in your opinion, what of my own destiny?"

A sharp breeze brushed past his face. Yuan Tiangang did not answer immediately, merely scanning him with his gaze for a moment before smiling.

"The karma carried by Brother Zhou is vast, complex, and unpredictable—truly a sign of a great power. However, the star of his military fortune is void. If in the future he can find an anchor point to fill it, he may advance further. This could lead to disaster, or it could lead to a breakthrough."

Having spent months together, he had gauged the man’s temperament and no longer addressed him with the formal, rigid title of "Your Excellency," opting instead for the more casual "Brother Zhou."

As the words faded, Zhou Wuqing, flying in the lead, narrowed his eyes slightly.

"Do you practitioners of the I Ching all have a penchant for speaking in riddles?"

"The world is a riddle, and I am within it as well," Yuan Tiangang laughed. "As cultivators walking this world, is the path of solving such riddles not a joy in itself?"

"Speak plainly."

"Is there no pleasure in giving a prophetic riddle and watching those who seek the answer struggle to fathom its deep meaning, utterly bewildered?"

"I would prefer to solve the person who sets the riddle."

***

After a day of such banter, the pair flew across most of Bingzhou. By the third day of the second month, they finally arrived at Wenshui County, located in the north of Bingzhou.

The site of this dragon vein was a valley surrounded by three mountains, with a clear stream flowing through it. The echo of birdsong filled the air, making the place feel secluded and vast.

Yuan Tiangang stood on the clouds, tapping his folding fan against his palm, his eyes shimmering with spiritual light. After a moment, the smile on his face faded, replaced by a look of gravity.

"The feng shui here is unusual. The dragon vein birthed from it is likely extraordinary. Brother Zhou, you had best be careful."

"Then let us see just how extraordinary it is."

He fanned out, triggering his arts, and gathered the ambient energy. Amidst the rumbling of earth and stone, a golden dragon of destiny appeared in the air, emitting a silent roar.

This golden dragon was nearly thirty yards long, its body spanning almost the entire valley. In comparison, the dragon veins they had severed previously were like mere snakes.

Having finished his spell, he closed his fan and retreated behind Zhou Wuqing with practiced ease.

The sound of a sword hum cut through the sky as a sharp blade of energy descended, striking the golden dragon. Scales scattered instantly, dissolving into golden mist. The dragon let out a silent roar, undulating as if trying to break free.

"To survive a strike from me, this loach is truly not simple."

As Zhou Wuqing spoke, his sword shifted; with a flash of light, it transformed into a longbow. As he nocked an arrow and pulled the string, immense true fire gathered at the bowstring, forming an arrow that shot forth with blinding speed.

*Whoosh!*

In Wenshui County, dozens of miles away, commoners walking the streets looked up unintentionally to see a meteor flash across the distance and vanish into the mountains. It triggered a muffled, thunderous roar, startling countless birds into flight across the horizon.

If they had ventured deep into the mountains at that moment, they would have seen a massive, charred crater in the valley, buried by falling rock. Wisps of golden energy leaked from the crevices of the stones, only to dissipate after a short while.

Seeing Zhou Wuqing lower his bow, Yuan Tiangang, standing behind him, stroked his folding fan, his eyes filled with surprise.

It was not because Zhou Wuqing had shattered the vein in two moves, but because the golden dragon had actually managed to withstand two of his strikes before breaking.

"A dragon vein like this... it seems an emperor was being nurtured here..."

Yuan Tiangang stared at the lingering wisps of energy, his gaze darkening.

He had traveled far and wide over the years and had visited Wenshui several times, yet he had never encountered anyone here with the physiognomy of an emperor.

The only exception was over forty years ago, when a lady carrying a newborn girl surnamed Wu asked him to read her fortune. At the time, he had seen at once that the girl carried immense karma and was destined for greatness. Later, when he saw her again, she was within the palace, and the palace servants referred to her as the Empress.

But how could an Empress interfere with the destiny of the Tang? Could it be that the Tang court was about to see a repeat of the Lu family’s interference in politics?

Just as he was pondering this, he heard Zhou Wuqing speak again.

"That's all of them. With these dragon veins severed, the changes to the empire mentioned in your *Tui Bei Tu* should disappear, shouldn't they?"

***

"As I said before, fate is predetermined by the Heavenly Dao; it can only be mitigated, not reversed."

Yuan Tiangang looked up at the sky, observing for a moment before continuing.

"According to the celestial signs, there are still variables hidden within the destiny of the Tang. I fear there will still be upheavals in the empire."

"However, now that the dragon veins across the land have been severed, coupled with the control of the Immortal Alliance, the intensity of these variables is far less than before. They should no longer pose a threat to the foundation of the Tang; there will only be some minor tremors, but everything will eventually return to calm."

Zhou Wuqing disagreed. "According to your I Ching theories, now that there are no dragon veins left, there won't be another True Dragon born in the Central Plains for fifty years. Unless they let a woman take the throne, what other kind of tremor could there be?"

"Fate is set. Whatever changes occur in the human world will eventually be corrected back to the starting point by the Heavenly Dao," Yuan Tiangang smiled. "This has nothing to do with who sits on the throne; it is simply that what must happen will happen, sooner or later."

"You really won't stop until you've spoken in riddles."

Zhou Wuqing let out a snort and flicked his hand, causing the longbow to vanish. "I don't believe in this 'predetermined fate.' If everything were arranged in advance, what would be the point of being a cultivator?"

"Whether one believes or not is a matter of the heart," Yuan Tiangang said, waving his fan. "Before the predetermined karma arrives, one simply needs to observe quietly."

...

...

"That was my first time traveling with him."

Yuan Tiangang finished his story and asked Luo Mingxian, who sat before him, "In your view, what do you think of him?"

"...A peerless talent of his generation."

Luo Mingxian pondered for a long time, eventually settling on that phrase.

Just as weeds will always grow in a garden, after entering the modern era, China had also once attempted to sever dragon veins. At that time, it had taken hundreds of people, splitting the very mountains that contained the veins, to barely manage it.

From the perspective of a modern person, the dragon vein Zhou Wuqing had severed back then likely belonged to the Wu family of the Great Zhou. With Empress Wu Zetian in the lead, the strength of that dragon vein was surely incomparable to any ordinary power, yet he had extinguished it single-handedly.

If such a person still existed, he would undoubtedly be a powerhouse renowned across the nation, if not the world, with a status in the supernatural hierarchy likely not much lower than Yuan Tiangang's.

But as the head of the Heavenly Secret Institute, this was the first time he had heard this name. He could only sigh at how time acts like a blade.

"Back then, in the Immortal Alliance, there were indeed many who called him a peerless talent; some even held him up as a god-like figure," Yuan Tiangang said with a smile. "But in reality, there is no need to over-mythologize him. Beyond the legends, he was just a man with human emotions and desires."