Chapter 53 – Destiny
“What’s that?”
“It’s destiny.”
Luo Xi calmly answered Ye Xinlan’s question.
“Could you tell me what this destiny thing is?”
“It’s an intentional concept, controlling everything in the world, directing every step according to its predetermined plans. This includes the development trends of the universe and the entire life cycle of every living being.”
Ye Xinlan blinked in shock.
“Do these things even have consciousness? What do they look like?”
“It’s just a concept, with no form or substance. It’s unknowable, just like how Kuro and I were born from it.”
Facing the gloomy sky pressing down on them, Luo Xi maintained her calm demeanor as she explained the things she knew to Ye Xinlan.
“Fate controls everything, including our existence between heaven and earth. However, we have the privilege to transcend its grasp. We can act based on our own thoughts, as long as we don’t meddle too much with the flow of fate, we won’t attract its curse.”
Luo Xi looked somewhere beyond the horizon, ignoring distance and space to focus on Kuro’s form.
“He spread his arms to the sky, as if trying to embrace the intangible force of fate.
“Fate! My friend! Can you feel the passion I’ve brought!? I am turning this world into something more interesting! Come, experience my well-prepared grand celebration of zeal!”
Luo Xi retracted her gaze towards the side to see Ye Xinlan.
“Kuro’s actions have seriously interfered with the course of fate, giving humans access to the power of stars and star eclipses prematurely, accelerating the decay of the human species, which is not humanity’s path.”
“Hmm…”
Ye Xinlan fell into deep thought.
This meant that nothing Kuro did was off-limits except meddling with the natural development of the world. Everything else was fair game.
But Kuro gave his power to nine humans, prompting the advancement of the backward era into one of extreme innovation.
Be it the Industrial Revolution in the East or the chaos in the West, none of these should have happened.
Each event will have a major impact on the future, causing the world to deviate from the path of fate.
Therefore, “fate” felt displeased.
Though Kuro and Bai emerged from fate, they weren’t under its dominion, but fate still had greater power over both.
The results were inevitable.
Luo Xi slowly stood up from beside Ye Xinlan.
“I’ll be back soon. Wait for me here.”
“Hmm… Are you really sure?”
“No problem. Until now, everything has been guided by Kuro’s will, so even if I face fate’s curse, I won’t suffer much.”
Upon hearing this, Ye Xinlan recalled reality once again.
Aside from a slight weakness, Luo Xi was fine for the most part.
As for Kuro, who was always up to mischief, things were not quite so simple.
Luo Xi quickly disappeared.
Ye Xinlan slipped back into reflection.
“Kuro must know he’ll be punished by fate, yet he still does so much. Could it be that he doesn’t care anymore?”
It probably was.
While Kuro was enthusiastic about everything under the sun, his ignorance of the consequences left him open to the wrath of fate.
But it was precisely his indifference that attracted that wrath.
Fate rules all.
Kuro and Bai will face their fate today.
Just like everything arranged by the heavens, there is no escape.
Ye Xinlan reflected on her own life.
So…
Was the awakening of the wish machine also part of fate’s plan?
Level B psychic power was just within the bounds of what fate allowed. No matter what, she couldn’t escape the framework of destiny.
Yet, surpassing the limits could free one from fate’s control, allowing them to freely change the world, just as Kuro and Bai are doing now.
Thus, the curses of fate targeted beings beyond the normal range, like the Origin of the Stars and the wish machine.
Stepping out of the framework of destiny invited the erosion of cursed powers.
Ye Xinlan finally understood.
She originally believed that the ultimate big bad was awakened Kuro, but instead, it was “destiny” itself.
Though staying out of trouble would prevent her from getting noticed by fate, knowing this thing has its own consciousness made Ye Xinlan uneasy.
“Hmm… Fate, it feels like an author creating a story where everyone’s a character, bound to play out the script. Am I just a minor role, too?”
Ye Xinlan shook off these thoughts quickly and started worrying about the newly departed Luo Xi.
She spent nearly every moment with Luo Xi recently, rarely leaving her side.
However, now with a short separation, Ye Xinlan was slightly disoriented.
Without the princess of wishes or Luo Xi, she felt extremely uneasy, alone in the oppressive environment.
She had gotten used to relying on others for her safety.
Once separated from the wish princess or Luo Xi, Ye Xinlan felt incredibly anxious.
In this twisted world, a powerless human like herself couldn’t protect herself anyway.
Time passed in silence.
Gradually, the sky in the utopian space returned to normal, lifting the heavy atmosphere.
Things seemed back to usual.
The sanctions of fate had ended.
Ye Xinlan finally relaxed a bit, starting to wait for Luo Xi.
A moment later.
Luo Xi reappeared before Ye Xinlan, her aura noticeably weaker.
Ye Xinlan quickly stood up to welcome her.
“How are you feeling, Luo Xi?”
“Not much harm done,” Luo Xi replied nonchalantly.
All the strength gained due to Kuro’s activities was taken away, along with a reduction in her original power level. Many drastic means for interfering with fate were eliminated.
“What about Kuro?”
Even though she already expected the outcome, Ye Xinlan asked the question ceremoniously.
“In a deep slumber, sent to another time. We are utterly severed by the curse of fate; barring any unforeseen circumstances, Kuro won’t wake up again. This is his fate.”
“Hmm…”
Ye Xinlan averted her eyes shyly.
She was the reason Kuro awakened after all.
It seemed having the wish machine would allow her to occasionally free herself from the grip of fate.
Of course, this wasn’t significant.
A simple awaken Kuro.
She was more than capable of being “fate” and continuing his punishment.
Yeah, absolutely!
Again, Ye Xinlan regained confidence.
“What’s happening outside? How are the First Generation?”
Luo Xi didn’t answer right away. Instead, she sat down beside Ye Xinlan.
In front of them appeared a screen.
That was the state of the nine first-generation members.
After Kuro and Bai suffered the curse of fate, their power went into severe instability, distorting the abilities of the nine first-generation members into irreversible and distorted states of star eclipses.
Now, they were all in a deep sleep, leaving behind a mess with no one to clean it up.
They would likely awake to find everything changed, no longer themselves, and controlled by obsessions instead.
This was their consequence for accepting power.
And the fate they had to endure for disrupting this era.
