Fate: Trajectory Distortion

Barn named the Fate Law he comprehended "Trajectory Distortion."

Its effect was straightforward: it could forcibly distort a target's movement trajectory, causing uncontrollable deviations.

The target could be large or small, an object or a person; all could be affected. There was just one rule: the higher the target's energy level, the weaker the effect of trajectory distortion. If facing a Midgod or even a Highgod, this distorting power would likely be like a stone sinking into the sea, unable to stir even a ripple.

This perfectly complemented the part of the Fate Law he had previously comprehended, "Destined Hit." "Destined Hit" acted on himself, allowing him to forcibly correct his own trajectory and ensure his attacks landed; "Trajectory Distortion," on the other hand, acted specifically on things other than Barn, focusing on interference and control.

But Barn always harbored doubts: the depth of his comprehension of "Trajectory Distortion" alone was far from the minimum standard for achieving Elemental Godhood. It was even shallower than the laws he comprehended when he broke through to the God level by fusing the Water Element with the Water Body Technique Profound Mysteries.

After much thought, the only reasonable explanation was that the "Destined Hit" he had previously comprehended and the newly comprehended "Trajectory Distortion" had merged and complemented each other, thus gaining the recognition of the Will of Heaven and Earth, allowing him to successfully achieve Lowgodhood in the Fate Law.

In the Coiling Dragon world, it was generally believed that there were three clear paths for individuals to break through to Lowgodhood independently:

First, to thoroughly comprehend a single Profound Mystery within the Elemental Laws; second, to fuse two or more Profound Mysteries within the Elemental Laws, with the fusion reaching a standard recognized by the Will of Heaven and Earth; third, to comprehend any one of the Four Great Rules to a standard recognized by the Will of Heaven and Earth.

(The second and third should still be counted separately, after all, the protagonist of this book needs to cultivate the Fate Law.)

However, in Barn's view, these three paths were fundamentally the same, with only one core: gaining the recognition of the Laws of Heaven and Earth.

Whether it was perfectly comprehending a single Profound Mystery, fusing multiple Profound Mysteries, or merely touching upon the Four Great Rules, all ultimately reached the "threshold" set by the Will of Heaven and Earth, thus drawing upon the power of Heaven and Earth, condensing a Godhead, and breaking through to the God level.

"In terms of practical combat ability, my Fate Clone is probably not even half as good as my Water Clone," Barn assessed inwardly. "My Water Clone, after all, achieved Godhood by fusing dual Profound Mysteries. Even if its attack power isn't top-tier, it's much stronger than a Lowgod who comprehended only one Lesser Profound Mystery. But my Fate Clone still hasn't found a suitable way to exert its power."

Yet, he also knew that the Fate Law might not be weak: "When my Fate Clone was first condensed, the divine power it could draw came from ten meters below the Sea of Divine Power, which was the same as the initial state of my Water Clone. This indicates that the Fate Law I comprehended is not inherently inferior, it's just that I haven't found the correct way to use it and haven't unleashed its true power."

He couldn't help but recall how Linley in the original work had fused the Wind Element's "Swiftness" and "Slowness" Profound Mysteries, unexpectedly comprehending the higher-level "Dimension" Profound Mystery and leaping to become a top-tier Lowgod.

"Perhaps, the 'Destined Hit' and 'Trajectory Distortion' I comprehended are both branches of a certain Higher Rule?"

According to the original work's setting, the Four Great Rules were self-contained systems, with no specific Profound Mystery branches. Barn speculated that perhaps when he pushed these two Fate-related rules to their extremes, he would find the intrinsic connection between them, merge them completely, and comprehend the true core of the Fate Law.

However, he had no idea when this opportunity would arise.

Barn brought Declan and Adele's family along, traveling to the wilderness west of Ice Prison Royal City. This area was far from the royal city's heartland and the border battlefields. It was desolate, with only some displaced Sanctuary Beasts and humans struggling to survive, living and dying on their own.

In the eyes of God-level powerhouses, such areas were called "pastures"—implying that these low-level Sanctuary beings were left to struggle for survival like livestock in a pasture. If any Sanctuary being managed to break through to Godhood here, the soldiers guarding the outskirts of the wilderness would appear immediately and recruit them under the Heavenly River Legion to supplement their combat strength.

Barn's purpose on this trip was solely to research practical combat techniques for the Fate Law, and he had no intention of harming these low-level Sanctuary beings. Moreover, he was now an officially registered Godlevel Squad Captain of the Heavenly River Legion, so no one would stop him from testing his moves here.

"Most people believe that the strongest aspect of the Fate Law is its Soul Attack, but in my opinion, its true terrifying aspect lies in its bizarre and unpredictable characteristics," Barn muttered to himself, recalling the settings from games in his past life. "If we were to compare it to games in my past life, God-level cultivators of the Fate Law were never characters who relied on attribute suppression, but rather characters who won through skillful operation and mechanics."

With proper operation, one could defeat stronger opponents and control the battle; but if the operation was flawed and it was purely a contest of offensive and defensive attributes, the Fate Law would likely be at the bottom among God-level beings of the same rank—apart from a slight advantage in Soul Attack, its physical attack power, defense, and speed were all shortcomings.

This was also the core reason Barn was eager to leave his base and head to the wilderness to test his moves: the combat power his Fate Clone could currently exert was too weak. If he couldn't find a suitable way to fight as soon as possible, his Fate Clone would be useless against strong enemies in the future, except for providing fused divine power.

Barn found an underground cavity deep in the wilderness, settling Declan and Adele's family in an adjacent cave. He then entered the deepest cavity alone, sealing himself off to research his techniques.

In the adjacent cave, Declan and Adele's family quietly settled down. Sensing the divine power fluctuations emanating from Barn's cave, which were sometimes obscure and sometimes violent, they couldn't help but start a low conversation.

"Barn has really changed a lot," Declan couldn't help but complain, though his tone was full of admiration. "Over a hundred years ago, he fought Gideon and was unconscious for a month. After waking up, he was like a different person, comprehending laws as easily as drinking water. In just a hundred years, he's already achieved Elemental Godhood in two elements. It's simply outrageous."

Adele listened to his grumbling, her gaze inadvertently sweeping towards Barn's cave, and said softly, "In Gobada, most Sanctuary beings without God-level protection are assimilated by the cruel environment here, becoming cruel and bloodthirsty, driven by profit, and fighting over meager resources."

Adele slowly continued, "But after spending time together, I can feel that Barn's fundamental nature still retains a core of kindness—he doesn't embezzle, he doesn't kill indiscriminately, and he's even willing to take us in and provide us with cultivation resources. Haven't you suffered before?"

Declan scratched his head: "We've definitely suffered. When we first came to Gobada, we were also living precariously. But we went through a time of utter desperation once, and fortunately, we survived in the end. Later, we met Miss Fukaloss, and things became much more stable."

Speaking of Fukaloss, Declan suddenly became interested and leaned closer, asking, "By the way, Adele, didn't you know Miss Fukaloss before? What's her background? I only knew she was powerful and generous before, and I never asked about her origins."

Adele raised an eyebrow slightly, somewhat surprised: "Didn't she tell you? She's the granddaughter of Lord Annabelle, the Ice Prison King. Her status in the royal city is extremely high."

"Ice Prison King?!" Declan's voice involuntarily rose a few decibels, his face full of shock. "No way? She's actually the King's granddaughter? No wonder she was so wealthy back then and could make Midgods treat her politely!"

Adele gently shook her head and explained, "Most Midgods in the royal city know about this. I heard it from my father before. It's just that the Ice Prison King has a cold personality and has always disliked her relatives using her name to show off, and she also detests others trying to curry favor with her. So, everyone tacitly pretends not to know about it."

Declan was stunned for a long time before slapping his head in annoyance: "If I had known she was the Ice Prison King's granddaughter, I should have tried to get closer and asked for more cultivation resources! I really missed a huge opportunity!"

Adele didn't reply further. She slowly stood up, her gaze fixed on her cave: "I'm going to cultivate. I hope to break through the bottleneck as soon as possible."

Declan watched her retreating figure, sighed helplessly, then turned his gaze towards Barn's cave, his eyes full of anticipation. He then turned back to his own cave, immersing himself in cultivation, aiming to break through the bottleneck of fusing the final Profound Mystery.