Library of Heaven’s Path 2: Eternal Destiny

Chapter 105: The Alliance of Seventeen Kingdoms

Uncertain about the plans of the three disciples, Zhang Xuan once again arrived at the library.

The student competition held no appeal for him; it was irrelevant whether he attended or not. Now, with the three Destiny Disks gifted by the head of the Liu family, he had ample Heaven's Fate Energy. His goal was to ascertain Teacher Kong's situation and quickly enhance his strength and cultivation.

The library was filled with a dense collection of books, but this time Zhang Xuan did not head straight for the cultivation methods. Instead, he went to the section on geography and culture.

Overview of the Terrain of the Hanyuan Dynasty, History of the Ten Great Dynasties, Introduction to the Dynasties, The Grievances and Affections between the Surrounding Three Kingdoms and the Hanyuan Dynasty.

A glance showed there were quite a few miscellaneous books.

Zhang Xuan was not in a hurry to catalog them; he checked them one by one. After passing through two rows of bookshelves without finding the information he wanted, he couldn't help but frown.

Most of these books were records about the Hanyuan Dynasty and over a dozen surrounding countries, yet none contained any information about the Zouyi Dynasty, as if this kingdom did not exist at all.

Just as he was puzzled, Su Qiao approached. “Teacher Zhang, what kind of books are you looking for?”

As the manager of the library, Su Qiao was still deeply impressed by Zhang Xuan's previous tumultuous absorption of Source Energy, which had caused quite a stir. He wanted to ask in advance to prevent another incident.

“I’m looking for some books that introduce the entire continent. Do we have any here?” Zhang Xuan asked.

Su Qiao shook his head. “The continent where the Hanyuan Dynasty is located is vast and boundless. We are just a small drop in the ocean; it’s insignificant. How could we possibly have such books? Only a large force like the Destiny Hall, which spans the entire continent, might have access to them!”

Zhang Xuan understood.

It was similar to when he was in the Tianxuan Kingdom, searching through all the books but never discovering the Zhang family of Saints or the Alien Spirit Clan—not because they were backward, but because they were too remote to come into contact with.

The same applied to the Hanyuan Dynasty; the ten surrounding dynasties were about the same size, with somewhat similar territories. It would be exceedingly difficult for someone compiling books to write about the entire continent.

“Elder Su, have you ever heard of the Zouyi Dynasty?” Zhang Xuan inquired, understanding this point.

“The Zouyi Dynasty?” Su Qiao pondered for a moment and shook his head involuntarily. “I’ve never heard of it! It shouldn’t belong to the Seventeen Kingdoms Alliance.”

“The Seventeen Kingdoms Alliance? What is that?” Zhang Xuan asked.

Su Qiao smiled. “The kingdoms on the continent are divided into first, second, and third tiers—first tier being the highest and third tier the lowest. Only those who enter the ranks can obtain the qualifications for cultivation. The Hanyuan Dynasty doesn’t even qualify as a third tier. To allow the people within to find Source Pools and become cultivators, they united with a total of sixteen other unranked dynasties, forming this alliance.”

This alliance fights together in times of danger and assists each other in crises, akin to brothers supporting one another, which enabled them to claim a third-tier kingdom status and gain an opportunity to reside in the Destiny Hall.

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Zhang Xuan raised an eyebrow, revealing a hint of confusion. “I don’t understand what you mean by cultivation qualifications or the opportunity to reside in the Destiny Hall…”

Is there a qualification required to cultivate?

As long as there is a Source Pool, can’t one cultivate?

Why would it be related to the status of the kingdom?

“You don’t know?” Su Qiao looked at him in surprise, though he found it odd. He continued to explain, “Source Warriors need to find Source Pools to cultivate, and not everyone has access to them. Without the fate for cultivation, even if one searched their entire life, they could never activate it, let alone cultivate! Just like in our Hanyuan Dynasty, previous cultivators spent their lives searching for a Source Pool but found nothing due to a lack of fate. This is the saying: ‘What is meant to be will come to be; what is not meant to be should not be forced!’”

“The Destiny Hall controls fate. Only by establishing a branch hall here can the people here gain the destiny and qualifications to cultivate, allowing them to find Source Pools.”

“Wait…” Zhang Xuan trembled all over.

He had always been puzzled about why he lacked a Source Pool. After all this time, it turned out that he did not belong to any kingdom, and naturally, he didn’t possess the fate for cultivation!

But through the Xuan World, he had forcibly created a Source Pool… Wasn’t that defying fate?

“Not only that, but cultivation must strictly adhere to fate!”

Su Qiao continued, “For instance, no matter how many spiritual herbs you consume or how powerful the cultivation method you practice, as long as your soul does not break through, your power will be capped at 99 horsepower and cannot exceed it. This is the power of fate! This also explains why cultivators at each realm do not differ too much from one another.”

Zhang Xuan understood.

He was clearly at the late stage of the Organ Realm, yet he possessed 99 horsepower. To think that even at the peak, he was still capped at 99 horsepower—after all this time, it was not that he had problems with his cultivation, but this was the reason.

Fate decreed that without a breakthrough in the soul, power could not exceed 99 horsepower. Thus, even the Heaven's Path cultivation method could not break through this limit.

“What aspects does fate encompass?”

After recovering from the shock, Zhang Xuan was curious.

“There’s quite a lot to it. What Teacher Zhang excels in—beast taming—is one form of fate. Alchemy and weapon crafting are also included, even matters of life, death, marriage, and crises; everything falls under fate.” Su Qiao explained.

Doesn’t that mean... one’s entire life is subject to the constraints of fate? Zhang Xuan frowned.

If that’s the case, living means being constrained. What meaning does life have?

“Even without fate, one is still bound!”

Seeing that he didn’t understand, Su Qiao elaborated, “Eating with chopsticks, finding a bed to sleep, using a cup to drink water… these common actions also adhere to rules. Arguing with others is a sign of immaturity; being bullied and not retaliating shows grace; dating multiple girls makes one a scoundrel; remaining single after losing a spouse is a virtue… these are rules subtly ingrained in your heart. As long as you’re alive, how can you not comply? You can certainly act as you please!”

“Indeed!” Zhang Xuan fell silent.

With this perspective, it was evident that rules were everywhere, and no one could escape, even someone like him, the lord of a world.

Su Qiao continued, “Rules form the structure of society, the foundation of kingdoms, and even the basis of the world. Without these, everything would be chaos!”

Zhang Xuan nodded.

Without rules, nothing could hold its shape. If everyone were driven by desire, the world would be filled with chaos, violence, and bloodshed. No one would produce anything, nor would anyone strive.

After inquiring a few more things, Zhang Xuan gained a certain understanding of the Destiny Hall and Destiny Masters. He then cupped his fists gratefully and said, “Thank you, Elder Su, for clearing my doubts!”

“Teacher Zhang is too polite. I have been in this library for decades. If you need to find any kind of books, just let me know! Whatever I know, I will share without reservation,” Su Qiao smiled.

“Thank you, Elder Su. With that said, I happen to have something I’d like to ask. I want to see the cultivation methods for the Jade Bone Realm, but it seems there aren’t any in this library…”

Realizing that the library had no information on the Zouyi Dynasty, Zhang Xuan stopped searching.

Having reached the peak of the Source Pool Sixth Layer of the Organ Realm, he was ready to challenge higher realms. Only with sufficient strength could he leave the Hanyuan Dynasty, exit the Seventeen Kingdoms Alliance, find Teacher Kong, and find a way to rescue him.

The cultivation method for the Jade Bone Realm was only available to the academy elders, placed on the third floor upstairs. To learn it, one had to first become an elder; ordinary teachers did not qualify.”

Su Qiao explained.

Zhang Xuan asked, “Do you know how one becomes an elder?”

“It’s simple. As long as you possess the strength of the Source Pool Sixth Layer of the Organ Realm and pass the academy assessment, you qualify for employment as an elder. There’s an Elder Hall over there, and there are teachers responsible for the evaluations. You can go consult them, and they will inform you in detail about what to do. But, Teacher Zhang… didn’t you just recently enter the Energy Storing Realm? Why are you asking about this?”

The memory of Zhang Xuan generating the Devouring Source Dragon phenomenon during his Energy Storing Realm training had left a deep impression on Su Qiao.

“Of course, I want to see if I can take the assessment to become an elder!”

After explaining, Zhang Xuan strode toward the Elder Hall.

“Taking

the assessment to become an elder? Has he already broken through to the Organ Realm?”

After a moment of shock, Su Qiao realized, unable to believe it.

Three days ago, he was at the Source Pool Third Layer, and today he was at the Organ Realm… He knew Zhang Xuan was a genius, but this was truly too remarkable…

“Quick, inform Dean Lu!”

Understanding that the elder assessment was a significant matter and knowing what this genius meant for the academy, Su Qiao hurriedly ran toward the Martial Arts Field.

Today’s student competition was sure to be presided over by the dean.

Not far from the Martial Arts Field, on a high platform, Lu Mingrong, Zuo Yunzhou, and others were seated, watching the many students competing below, their eyes filled with admiration.

To facilitate this competition, they had built nine platforms overnight, allowing ten arenas to commence simultaneously, thus speeding up the process. Otherwise, with thousands of participants, it would take at least half a month to finish.

Not far away, the esteemed Xu Xin had given them only three days, meaning all competitions must conclude within this timeframe and yield results.

“Dean Lu, Yu Xiaoyu and Liu Mingyue have made significant progress…”

Observing Yu Xiaoyu and others who easily defeated their opponents, Zuo Yunzhou couldn’t help but marvel.

Although they had not revealed all their power, continuously defeating dozens of people without breaking a sweat clearly indicated their cultivation had improved significantly since the last time they had met.

“Indeed, it seems Teacher Zhang is also a skilled instructor…” Lu Mingrong nodded, noting the matters related to the way of the teacher’s destiny could not be discussed openly, but praising his teaching was acceptable.

“I heard he teaches cultivation methods he researched himself, not the academy’s Returning Energy Accumulation Technique!”

Wu Yunzhou chimed in with a look of concern. “Having just begun his training, he probably only reached the Energy Storing Realm and hasn’t even hit the Body Tempering Realm yet. To create such a powerful cultivation method—this Teacher Zhang not only excels at teaching but also has an astounding grasp of cultivation techniques. With this understanding, combined with his extraordinary talent, he might reach the peak or late stage of the Body Tempering Realm within a month…”

“A month? The peak of the Body Tempering Realm?”

Ran Qingxu nearby shook his head. “When I broke through from the Energy Storing Realm to the peak of the Body Tempering Realm, it took me a full five years. Cultivation must follow a gradual process. Even if he is a genius, it cannot be that fast.”

“That’s true…” Wu Yunzhou nodded.

Cultivation is like building a house; no matter how high one’s talent, without a solid foundation, it’s like a reed floating on the water, unable to last long.

Zhang Xuan could absorb Source Energy and create the Devouring Source Dragon phenomenon, showcasing his undeniable talent, but no matter how extraordinary that talent is, he still needed to cultivate layer by layer, making one level of progress after another, rather than soaring directly to the top.

“In the past, City Lord Yu was known as the best in a century, yet it took him a full two years to elevate from the Energy Storing Realm to the mid Body Tempering Realm. Zhang Xuan’s talent is undoubtedly better than his, yet it will indeed be difficult for him to achieve that in under a year…”

As Lu Mingrong spoke, he suddenly noticed Su Qiao rushing over, bowing with cupped fists. “Dean, Teacher Zhang… he has gone to the Elder Hall. He should be qualified and is attempting to take the elder assessment!”

“Taking the elder assessment?”

Lu Mingrong and the others exchanged glances, momentarily stunned. Then, a sound of disbelief slowly escaped their lips.

“Source Pool Sixth Layer… Organ Realm?”

Author's Note