Ancient Soul Confrontation, Tianzang's Selfishness

The moment the roar of the extra-territorial catastrophe pierced through the ancient barriers, the entire world, sealed by the Eye of True Heaven, fell into an eerie, deathly silence.

The Eye of True Heaven, which had hung high in the void, indifferently overlooking all living beings, suddenly turned sharp and piercing. The supreme pressure that had shrouded the universe was no longer peaceful; it was replaced by a cold, baleful aura that had been sealed away for eons, as if someone had caught it off guard and ripped open its most secret, unsightly, and hidden past.

The air currents between heaven and earth froze completely, the laws of the Heavens ceased their flow, and the origin of chaos curled up and vanished.

Everyone could clearly perceive that the current situation had completely deviated from the old framework of the "Fate Defier challenging the chessboard."

The incomplete Ancient Soul light-shadow emerging from the Fate-Defying Ancestral Seal on Lin Chen's chest was faint and fragmented, appearing as though it would dissipate with a single breeze, yet it carried an ancient aura capable of standing on equal footing with the True Heaven. The hoarse, aged voice had not yet faded, but it struck like a rusted, ancient blade, hacking directly into the core secret of this world.

The ancient cage meant to protect the world, the agreement—it had long since been voided.

The catastrophe hid treachery, and the Heavens themselves harbored selfish motives.

In just two short sentences, the grand righteousness that the True Heaven had just proclaimed was overturned.

Previously, when the masses heard that the True Heaven had sealed the world and created a chessboard to protect it, they felt unwilling, yet they vaguely understood it as a helpless measure taken in the face of an ancient desperate situation. Countless living beings reduced to pawns and the universe turned into nourishment was cruel to the extreme, but it was ultimately to resist the extra-territorial world-ending catastrophe and preserve the roots of the myriad worlds.

But now, the Ancient Soul had laid it bare: the so-called protection of the world hid selfish intent; the so-called eternal agreement had long since rotted away.

The supreme righteous path that the True Heaven had established over hundreds of billions of years was instantly shrouded in an indescribable gloom.

"Presumptuous."

At the peak of the void, the cold and indifferent voice finally carried a trace of genuine, biting chill.

This was the first time the True Heaven had shown true anger since its manifestation.

The invisible pressure of the Heavenly Dao descended with a boom, not aimed at the masses, but locked firmly onto that wisp of the incomplete Ancient Soul on Lin Chen's chest. The entire sealed space trembled violently; the folds of the void collapsed and reconstructed in layers, and countless fine chains of Heavenly Dao laws sprouted from thin air, densely winding around the world to instantly suppress this remnant soul that dared to defy the Heavenly Dao and expose the old secrets.

"A mere wisp of lingering ash, and you dare to discuss the Eternal Heavenly Strategy?"

The will of the True Heaven was as vast as the firmament, causing the billions of Great Daos to roar and tremble.

Above the nine heavens, the Seven Supremes' expressions changed drastically, their bodies tensed to the limit. They had lived through the changing of epochs and witnessed the death of Daos, but they had never seen the True Heaven show anger. The Heavenly Dao was supposed to be heartless, looking down on all beings as dust, yet today, it had actually given rise to resentment and apprehension because of a few words from a remnant soul.

This alone was enough to prove that what the Ancient Soul said was by no means a lie.

"So... the so-called Heaven also has selfish desires," one Supreme murmured, the faith in the Heavenly Dao that had existed for eons cracking in his eyes for the first time.

Since ancient times, the beings of the Heavens had revered the Heavenly Dao, followed its rules, and accepted the cycle of life and death, all believing that the Heavenly Dao was impartial and maintained balance. They had fought against the chessboard and defied fate to survive, but they had always been fighting the manipulation of the pseudo-Heavenly players, never questioning the foundation of the true Heavens.

But at this moment, the high and mighty True Heaven had revealed another, unknown side.

To the side, the massive black shadow of the Chaos King drifted slowly, the world-ending black torrent gradually calming. Born of disorder, it did not believe in the righteous path nor respect the Heavens, and at this moment, it saw things clearly.

The more the True Heaven raged and tried to cover things up, the more it proved that the ancient secrets contained shocking trickery.

On the ground, Kallen, Frieza, and the Golden Super Saiyan held their breath, staring fixedly at Lin Chen in the center of the formation.

They could clearly see the dim light of the dark Ancestral Seal on Lin Chen's chest flickering, and the incomplete Ancient Soul light-shadow shaking violently under the suppression of the Heavenly Dao chains, as if it would completely collapse and vanish into nothingness in the next second.

Yet, even on the verge of disintegration, the Ancient Soul did not retreat in the slightest.

The incomplete light-shadow rose slightly, facing the Heavenly Dao laws pressing down from the sky, and once again emitted a hoarse and firm sound, every word dripping with blood, every sentence piercing the clouds.

"This Seat dares not discuss the Heavenly Strategy, only recount the facts of the ancient past!"

"Eons ago, when the extra-territorial catastrophe first appeared, it was indeed enough to swallow the myriad worlds and annihilate the origin. You built the cage to seal the world and isolate the disaster; all beings were grateful for your merit, the Heavens relied on you to exist, and chaos continued because of this—it was indeed a merit of immeasurable scale!"

"But you feared the catastrophe, and you feared even more the backlash of destiny hidden within it! You sealed the cage not to protect all beings, but to protect yourself!"

Boom!

This sentence exploded like a thunderclap in everyone's consciousness.

The entire world was instantly in an uproar, endless shock sweeping through every inch of the void.

Self-preservation?

The high and mighty True Heaven, which transcended the myriad worlds and held the power of life and death over eons, would actually fear backlash and scheme for eons for its own selfish gain?

The Eye of True Heaven grew colder, and the chains of the Heavenly Dao accelerated their contraction, ruthlessly crushing down toward the remnant soul light-shadow, attempting to forcibly silence it and erase all traces of the past.

"Noisy! Annihilate!"

The terrifying power of the Heavenly Dao crushed down, enough to instantly erase a Supreme at their peak, enough to shatter a Great Thousand Universe.

Lin Chen's gaze sank; he would no longer stand by.

He knew clearly that this Ancient Soul originated from the Ancestral Seal; it was a part of his own origin and the only ancient clue to the path of breaking the cage. Once the remnant soul was annihilated, the ancient secrets would be sealed away forever, and he would never be able to touch the truth, forever trapped in the framework defined by the True Heaven.

More importantly, what the Ancient Soul said coincided with the insights he had gained along his journey.

If the Heavenly Dao were truly impartial, it would not allow all spirits to be pawns for generations, never to rise; if the eternal framework were truly for the sake of protecting the world, it would not lock down the hearts of all beings, forbidding anyone from defying fate to break the game.

This Heaven was inherently unjust!

"Want to silence me? Did you ask me first?"

Lin Chen let out a low shout, and the light of the dark Ancestral Seal around his body surged violently.

The power to break the cage, originally contained within his origin, erupted completely. The golden origin of anti-Dao and the dark divine light of the Ancestral Seal intertwined, transforming into a two-colored beam of light that pierced through the heavens and earth, forcibly holding up the chains of the Heavenly Dao that were pressing down from the sky.

Sizzle—

The supreme Heavenly Dao power and the Ancestral Seal's power to break the cage collided crazily, and countless tiny sparks of origin exploded in the void.

The chains of the Heavenly Dao melted and broke inch by inch, regenerated, and melted again, repeating without end.

With the strength of Lin Chen alone, he forcibly blocked the suppression and lethal strike of the Eye of True Heaven, shielding that strand of ancient soul on the verge of dissipation.

At this moment, the Heavens fell into a deathly silence, and the Chaos was hushed.

Throughout the ages, no one had dared to confront the will of the True Heaven head-on.

Even the Out-of-Domain Chess Player, who wielded the Myriad Chess reincarnation and plotted the endgame for eons, was merely a puppet piece before the True Heaven, not daring to show the slightest defiance.

Yet today, a human youth who had walked out of the cage of the chess game rose against the tide, shaking the very heavens!

"Defying the path alone, resisting the eternal True Heaven... This child truly subverts the understanding of the epoch." The Seven Supremes were shaken to their core, their eyes filled with awe.

At the peak of the void, the Eye of True Heaven stared at Lin Chen, the hostility in its gaze receding slightly, replaced by a profound, indifferent scrutiny.

"Successor of the Ancestral Seal, heart of the defiant path, unique throughout the ages."

"This Seat cherishes the resilience of your Dao heart and acknowledges the difficulty of your escape from the chess game; I intended to leave you a sliver of life, allowing you to survive within the cage of this world."

"But you insist on being deluded, determined to explore forbidden secrets, protecting a remnant soul, and defying the heart of Heaven."

"Since that is the case, This Seat shall tell you the whole truth, letting you know what the laws of Heaven are, what destiny is, and what the great trend you can never resist is!"

The voice of the True Heaven echoed through the world, carrying an indifference that looked down upon the ages, no longer concealing or sugarcoating anything.

The chains of the Heavenly Dao that had been suppressing the sky slowly retracted into the void, and the tense situation of the world temporarily eased.

Following this, scenes from the ancient past, even older and more cruel than before, slowly unfolded before the eyes of all living beings in the Heavens.

Eons ago, when the Out-of-Domain catastrophe first arrived, it was not merely a natural disaster of world destruction.

Hidden within the catastrophe was a Source of Destiny capable of overturning everything.

Whoever devoured the Source of Destiny could transcend the Heavens, rise above the Chaos, leap out of reincarnation, and become truly immortal.

However, the backlash of the Source of Destiny was extremely powerful; those who devoured it by force would, at best, have their Dao foundation shattered, and at worst, have their body and soul annihilated, with even the source of the Heavenly Dao dragged into the abyss of destruction.

When the True Heaven was first born, wielding the primitive world, it felt greed when faced with the catastrophe and the temptation of the Source of Destiny.

It dared not risk its own body, nor could it bear the backlash of destiny alone, so it personally drew the boundaries of the cage, divided the structure of the myriad worlds, and derived the three systems of the Heavens, Chaos, and Myriad Chess.

It used myriad living beings and countless universes as trial pieces, using the eternal reincarnation as a long-term tempering process.

Its purpose was never to protect the world, but to use the trials of all spirits to dissipate the backlash of destiny and polish a foolproof method for devouring the source!

The Myriad Chess reincarnation harvested all living beings to condense nutrients for the source; the shifting wars of the Heavens were to temper resistance to the Great Dao; the chaotic birth and destruction were to offset the hostility of the catastrophe.

The struggles, sacrifices, resistance, and destruction of all beings throughout the ages were never accidents; they were all trial segments meticulously designed by the True Heaven.

The so-called chess game was a testing ground.

The so-called common people were the touchstones.

The so-called protection of the world was the most absurd hoax.

Everything was merely a grand, eternal scheme laid out by the True Heaven to achieve its own immortality!

"So... that is how it is..."

The Golden Super Saiyan's body trembled slightly, the faith in his eyes completely collapsing.

They had fought against destiny for generations, thinking they were opposing a false heavenly chess game, believing they were protecting the Great Dao of the common people. In the end, everyone's struggle, sacrifice, blood, and obsession were merely specks of dust on the True Heaven's path to transcendence, a mere play.

How pathetic, how ironic.

Kallen clenched his fists, purple battle energy surging incessantly, his heart filled with anger but nowhere to vent. All living beings tried their best to control their own destiny, but the end of that destiny had been locked by the heavens from the very beginning.

The Chaos King let out a low, obscure roar, the endless torrent of chaos churning violently, the disgust stemming from its very source erupting completely. It was born of disorder and hated calculation and hypocrisy above all else; this supreme True Heaven before it was even more despicable and ruthless than the Chess Player.

Lin Chen looked at the ancient scenes across the sky, his mind settling into a state of absolute calm.

There was no anger, no shock, only a cold, crystalline clarity.

He finally understood why the Ancestral Seal was born to break the cage, and why his defiant path could restrain all chess paths and heavenly paths.

Because from the very beginning of the eternal game, the destiny of all living beings had been thoroughly betrayed.

The Chess Player was a puppet, the common people were nourishment, the chess game was a hoax, and the Heaven was the culprit.

"You used the eternal common people as bait and the reincarnation of myriad worlds as chess, all for your own transcendence." Lin Chen raised his eyes, his gaze clear and cold, staring directly at the Eye of True Heaven at the peak of the void. "You feared the backlash of the catastrophe and dared not act yourself, so you enslaved all spirits to take the risk for you. Your so-called heavenly laws are private paths; your so-called destiny is a hoax."

The True Heaven responded indifferently: "The world is governed by the law of the jungle; all living beings live by relying on the Heavenly Dao, and it is only right that they sacrifice themselves for it. If This Seat had not established the cage, the myriad worlds would have perished long ago, and you would not even have the qualifications for reincarnation."

"Living by relying on something is not the same as selling oneself into slavery." Lin Chen did not yield an inch. "Life is the foundation of the common people; destiny is one's own path. You act for selfish ends under the guise of protecting the world, locking the eternal shackles and trapping the hearts of all beings. This Heaven is not righteous! This path is unjust!"

The faint light of the Ancestral Seal suddenly blazed, and the incomplete ancient soul's silhouette stabilized completely, confronting the True Heaven from across the vast void.

One soul and one heaven, the grievances of ages, were finally laid out on the table today.

But just as the confrontation reached a fever pitch and a new, earth-shattering battle was about to erupt, something happened.

Outside the barriers of the cage, the Out-of-Domain catastrophe, which had previously only been faintly seeping in, suddenly turned ten times more violent!

Rumble--

The earth-shattering, eternal sound of destruction continued incessantly.

The barrier of the eternal cage, which the True Heaven had spent endless years forging, was covered in dense, pitch-black cracks. Countless eerie, cold, and sinister Out-of-Domain baleful energies, far exceeding the power of chaotic destruction, surged madly into this world through the cracks.

Even more terrifying was a blurred, boundless, massive black shadow that shrouded the entire Out-of-Domain void, slowly pressing against the cage barrier.

Within that black shadow, there was no order, no chaos, no Heavenly Dao, and no chessboard.

There was only a wisp of destiny's aura hidden within, one that made even the Eye of True Heaven wary and caused the Ancestral Seal to tremble.

At the pinnacle of the void, the Eye of True Heaven, which had always remained indifferent and composed, revealed a flicker of extreme dread and panic for the very first time.

The ancient remnant soul within Lin Chen's chest suddenly vibrated violently, conveying a warning filled with boundless terror:

"This is bad... The catastrophe is not the greatest crisis. The backlash of destiny has manifested; the true and false Heavenly Daos of the ages are about to collapse simultaneously!"

Cracks spread across the sky and earth, and a dual despair from within and without descended upon the world.

No one had ever expected that the very moment the ancient deception was torn apart would be the beginning of the true destruction of the entire world!