finally, zhao tian let out a faint sigh and leaned forward slightly, meeting her gaze. "and if i am? what do you intend to do about it, sect master?"


    ji shuang smiled faintly, "do you think i brought you here to threaten you, zhao tian?"


    "you wouldn’t be the first," zhao tian replied evenly.


    ji shuang chuckled softly, shaking her head. "if i wanted to harm you, zhao tian, i wouldn’t have hidden your crossing of the 10th degree. i would have exposed it to the world and let your enemies deal with you."


    zhao tian gave a faint nod "figured that much... then why bring this up now?"


    "because i want to help you," ji shuang said simply.


    "the honoured one’s path is one of unparalleled hardship. the heavens will not allow your existence to go unchallenged, and neither will the forces that once opposed the original honoured one. you’ll need allies... and guidance to survive."


    upon hearing this, zhao tian’s eyes narrowed "allies huh... and what do you gain by helping me?"


    discover stories with empire


    ji shuang’s faint smile widened slightly. "let’s just say i have a vested interest in seeing how far the honoured one can go."


    "the heavens may view you as a threat, but i see you as an opportunity. perhaps you will shatter the cycle of oppression they’ve imposed on us all."


    huh? zhao tian raised an eyebrow "the cycle of oppression? do you mean the mortal restriction that the heavens have imposed on everyone?"


    with a nod, ji shuang replied "you can word it like that... and you are 22 years old, right?"


    zhao tian’s gaze squinted in mild surprise as she knew his age "yeah..."


    ji shuang hummed under her breath "it was exactly 22 years ago, the balance of the world shifted and the astral energy around the world increased to adapt itself for the honoured one who was born."


    zhao tian stayed silent, listening to her, and ji shuang continued...


    "zhao tian, even though i am curious what this honoured one can achieve, what i truly want is liberation."


    ji shuang stood, walking to the large window that overlooked the sect’s expansive grounds.


    her silhouette was illuminated by the golden glow of the setting sun, "the first honoured one’s triumph against the heavens was not complete."


    "yes, they shattered the heavens’ will in their time, and for a brief moment, the world tasted true freedom."


    "cultivators rose to unimaginable heights, the seals that bound their potential obliterated. but the heavens are not just a force... they are a living, evolving entity. and they learned."


    she turned to face zhao tian, "after the first honoured one ascended, the heavens devised a new layer of suppression. the heaven’s seal became more sophisticated, more insidious."


    "instead of outright chains, it became invisible bonds intertwined with the very fabric of existence. it seeped into the flow of energy, the natural laws, even the souls of cultivators. the heavens ensured that no one, not even the honoured one’s successors, could ever repeat what had been done before."


    zhao tian’s was taken aback to hear this "so you’re saying the heavens are smarter now? that they’ve evolved to suppress anyone who dares to defy them again?"


    ji shuang nodded. "exactly. the first honoured one’s victory was a temporary one, a momentary rebellion that the heavens took as a lesson."


    "they created the current ’chain of divine accord’ to be unbreakable... not by force, but by design. that is why no one has crossed the 8th degree of tribulation since then. the heavens ensured that no cultivator could ever grow strong enough to challenge them again. until you."


    zhao tian crossed his arms, his mind racing with the implications of her words. "if they adapted after the first honoured one, what makes you think i can succeed where they failed? what’s different now?"


    ji shuang’s gaze softened, and a faint smile curved her lips. "because you are not the first honoured one. you are something new, something they couldn’t predict."


    "if the heavens had fully adapted to the honoured one, you could not have crossed the 10th degree, but you did.. so you are still an anomaly."


    "the heavens’ will is not omnipotent; it is a system, and every system has its flaws. you are their flaw, zhao tian. a living flaw... an anomaly they cannot fully control or comprehend."


    zhao tian sighed, a wry smile tugging at his lips. "an anomaly, huh? that’s not exactly reassuring."


    ji shuang stepped closer, "the first honoured one showed us that the heavens can be defied."


    "but their victory was incomplete because they didn’t account for the heavens’ capacity to adapt. you, however, are a different kind of weapon... one they haven’t had time to adapt to. that is why i believe you can succeed where they could not."


    --------------------------------------------------


    i hope you guys liked this chapter!