It Was All Jingxing's Fault

"Change the past?" Jingxing stared at Yaoguang, and Cloud-Washing Ink-Tracer appeared in his hand. "When we first arrived at this point in time, the fourth seat of the Genius Society tried to intercept and kill me and Fu Xuan."

"Because she was worried we would change the past," Jingxing continued, "Fortunately, she doesn't seem to be able to do anything about me, but we promised this time travel only to bring you back."

He pointed Cloud-Washing Ink-Tracer at Yaoguang: "Don't make us break our promise, okay?"

"Although I really want to say 'yes'," Yaoguang shook his head, "If it were the old me, I would definitely have agreed, but not now."

Jingxing's heart sank. "What do you mean?"

Yaoguang stood up and took the initiative to greet him, "I should thank you."

Jingxing thought he had misheard, "What?"

"Actually, when I first returned to this year, that 'Silent Lord' also tried to assassinate me, but she failed." Yaoguang pointed at Jingxing. "I analyzed it, and it's probably because I was exposed to some of your power before the time jump, and that part of your power broke her Omniscient Domain, which made her temporarily give up on assassinating me."

"If it were before, I might have obediently waited until you came to pick me up, and then returned to 'the present'," Yaoguang shook his head, "But since I've finally had an opportunity that even the Omniscient Heavenly Lord couldn't interfere with, I want to try again."

Jingxing wanted to persuade him further, but Yaoguang turned his gaze to Fu Xuan.

"Junior sister," she asked, "Don't you want to try again? Even if it's just for Master."

Fu Xuan bit his lip.

"Let's join forces and try again to change Master's fate." Yaoguang extended his hand.

Jingxing was stunned. He turned to look at Fu Xuan and saw a flicker of interest in the Lord Diviner's eyes.

Even if she accepted the fact that "fate can only be pursued, not changed" after what happened back then, it seems there's a turning point now?

"What I mean is," Yaoguang pushed the map towards the center, pressing his finger against the corner, "We used to think that even going back to the past wouldn't change anything. But after Polka Kakamond disappeared, I realized that the past can be changed."

To prove her point, Yaoguang showed the two people two small things she had done.

First, she transferred a captain who was supposed to die in a skirmish to the rear guard to manage horses, but now that his death sentence has passed, he is still alive and well. Second, she intercepted a group of merchants attempting to smuggle weapon raw materials to the Abominations of Abundance, imprisoned them all, and confiscated their goods. In real history, these merchants made a fortune and caused considerable trouble for Fanghu's Cloud Knights.

"So far, it has all been successful," she said. "So, with Mr. Jingxing's help, the past can indeed be changed."

Jingxing paused for a moment.

Yaoguang lifted his finger from the corner of the map and unfolded it.

"Although I'm only fixing minor issues right now," she said, "In a battle, small things piling up can affect the overall situation."

Jingxing stared at Yaoguang's hand and realized that besides Idrila's blessing, his power might also contain some of Yog Sothos's share.

"If I take all these powers back, should Yaoguang give up?"

But what if Polka Kakamond out and stabs Yaoguang after he takes it back? Jingxing had no choice but to abandon this idea.

Fu Xuan remained silent. Jingxing could see her hands, tucked into her sleeves, clenched tightly, and the gemstone on her forehead flickering in the shadows cast by the eaves—this was the first time he had seen "longing" on Fu Xuan's face.

"Senior Sister," Fu Xuan said softly, "Are you planning to trade yourself for Master's control of the Cloud-Gazing Mirror?"

Yaoguang put down his teacup, looked at his junior sister for a long time, and finally said, "The Cloud-Gazing Mirror is a last resort in this war."

She paused, then continued, "If we do better in the early stages, preventing Jidu from suppressing Fanghu, perhaps we won't need to use the Cloud-Gazing Mirror to summon the Reignbow’s Manifestation. That way, Master won't have to..."

"And what's the price?" Jingxing interjected.

"No cost." Yaoguang said decisively. "I have the past history firmly in mind. What I need to do now is to fill in the gaps and analyze the possible changes in the battle situation."

"That's why I need your help, Junior Sister." Yaoguang grasped Fu Xuan's hand. "If we, the Senior Sisters, work together, along with Master, we can definitely calculate all the possibilities and turn this Denizens of Abundance victory into a complete triumph."

"The war will begin in fifteen days." Yaoguang stared at Fu Xuan. "Junior Sister..."

She then turned to Jingxing: "And Mr. Jingxing, I'd like to ask you both to try with me once more. Let's see if we can find a more perfect ending."

Jingxing remained silent. When he came, he thought he would take the person back, return the Jade Knot, and fulfill his promise, and that would be the end of it.

But now...

Outside the courtyard wall, a loud bugle call echoed over the eaves. Yaoguang withdrew his hand.

"You can take your time to think it over whether you'll help me or not," she said. "I'll wait for you here."

"As for what happens next, just pick any room you like. No one will be able to see you except me, so you'll have to rely on each other for daily needs." Yaoguang shrugged.

Jingxing did not answer immediately. He looked down at the Jade Knot in his palm. His original intention in coming here was to return this thing and bring Yaoguang back to the Jade Abacus Xianzhou.

But now he's suddenly forced to decide whether or not to participate in the Third War of the Denizens of Abundance...

Jingxing had just secretly experimented and found that although others could not observe him, he could still interact with his surroundings. In other words, if Jingxing wanted to, he could unilaterally attack the enemy on the battlefield, and the enemy would not even be able to fight back.

"It's like having a cheat code in a game," Jingxing summarized his current state.

He turned to look at Fu Xuan. The short, pink-haired Diviner was still sitting on the stone bench, his eyes fixed on the map, motionless.

The copper bells on the eaves rang again, and a refreshing breeze blew in from outside the courtyard wall, gently fluttering the edges of the map.

"Fu Xuan," Jingxing said softly, "What do you think?"

Fu Xuan raised her eyes. The gem on her forehead gleamed briefly in the twilight before dimming again.

"I am the Diviner." Fu Xuan closed his eyes. "The Diviner must obey the General's commands."

After saying that, she lowered her head and placed her hand on the corner of the map—the very spot where Yaoguang had just pressed.

The lights in the courtyard lit up one after another, illuminating the Xianzhou from over twenty years ago with a warm and jade-like glow.

"So you've already made up your mind, right?" Jingxing asked.