I Hijacked the Timeline (IHT)

The appearance of a Super-Domain Creature dramatically changed the situation.

The previously warring Domain factions all simultaneously chose to cease hostilities.

With the black curtain enveloping the canyon and covering a radius of several kilometers, the internal world was entirely isolated from the outside. Gazing at the massive black hand suspended in the sky, Feng Qi felt an indescribable sense of oppression welling up from within.

The bloodline suppression of a higher-order life form caused his body to tremble involuntarily. Yet, his heart held no fear.

He immediately began analyzing the current situation, grasping for any insight amidst the crisis.

From a historical perspective, the Mist Lord and Qin Shikong had both survived this crisis.

This led him to believe that a solution must exist to weather the storm. However, he still harbored some concern—his presence could have altered history, possibly leading to unforeseen deaths.

After all, in the original timeline, it was highly unlikely that he had taken charge of this escort mission.

He speculated that it should have been Mu Qing overseeing the task, not him.

It was this deviation that might have caused Mu Qing's fate to shift slightly.

Feng Qi even guessed that the original timeline was when Mu Qing and Qin Shikong had first met during this escort mission, eventually leading to the historical event of Qin Shikong leading the Qingtian Domain Combat Squad to join Dawn.

Now, with Mu Qing absent and the emergence of a Super-Domain Creature, the situation was dire.

At this moment, Lü Yue descended from the sky on his sword and landed by Feng Qi's side.

"Qi-ge, I'll protect you and break through!"

"Wait. The first one to stick their neck out always gets hit. Breaking out isn't the wisest move right now. Let's observe the situation first."

Hearing Lü Yue's intention to break through, Qin Shikong quickly spoke up to stop him.

"A-Yue, don't rush. We're not the only ones trapped; those Domain creatures are probably even more anxious than us. Let's wait and see," Feng Qi added.

"Understood," Lü Yue nodded without hesitation. The blade of his sword returned to its sheath with a quiet hum.

The three turned their gazes skyward.

Above, a massive black spatial rift continuously distorted, and the enormous black hand extended out of it. Yet, for some reason, most of the Super-Domain Creature's body remained hidden.

Only the black, fur-covered arm was visible, its other end connected to the rift. The oppressive presence from the hand hung over them like the scythe of death, poised to strike at any moment.

Staring at the arm, Feng Qi's expression grew grim.

The reason for the Super-Domain Creature's arrival was obvious—it sought the same goal as the other factions: the Bloodstone.

Suddenly, the black hand in the sky lowered sharply.

In an instant, an overwhelming pressure descended. Qin Shikong's formation was automatically triggered, and countless golden runes appeared, orbiting the faint golden barrier at the edges of the formation.

But for reasons unknown, the enormous black hand suddenly froze in mid-air.

A deep, guttural roar echoed from the spatial rift, shaking the earth and sky.

The black hand began to descend again, slowly yet steadily.

The sheer weight of its oppressive aura caused everyone's bodies to tremble uncontrollably. A fierce gale swept through, whipping their clothes into a frenzy.

"Hold the line!"

Standing at the array's core, Qin Shikong gritted his teeth and shouted.

Lü Yue drew his sword, the blade hovering mid-air to share the pressure of the descending arm.

The formation was now under immense strain. Golden, twisted patterns rapidly circulated around the array, while the designs beneath their feet shifted constantly under Qin Shikong's control.

Just then, a blue light erupted in the distance.

A cascade of blue light particles rained down, forming a Domain-like barrier far away.

Feng Qi raised his head to look. The Domain creatures had ceased their infighting and gathered within the barrier, also gazing warily at the sky.

Crack!

A sharp sound echoed as a crack appeared on the golden array, quickly spreading like spiderwebs. The formation was on the brink of collapse.

"The array can't hold much longer!" Qin Shikong shouted through gritted teeth.

"When it breaks, I'll take over!"

Lü Yue's figure lifted into the air, carried by his sword's energy. A third eye appeared between his brows, radiating sharp intent.

As the black hand continued its descent, the golden array shattered with a deafening crash.

The terrifying pressure swept through like a gale, crushing everything in its path.

At this critical moment, Lü Yue manipulated Jianlan to ascend.

Jianlan radiated a dazzling light, significantly easing the burden on everyone present.

The situation had reached a critical point, and Feng Qi didn't doubt for a second that he might die here.

Despite Lü Yue's valiant effort to withstand the force, his struggle was evident—his endurance would not last long.

As the massive black hand descended further, Lü Yue's face turned pale, his aura becoming increasingly erratic.

Noticing Lü Yue's deteriorating state, Qin Shikong gritted his teeth and shouted, "Lü Yue, let me take over next!"

He readied the Eight Trigrams Disk to deploy it, but before he could act, a shadow suddenly appeared above their heads.

Feng Qi instinctively looked up.

Hovering above them was a Domain Creature, over three meters tall, resembling the legendary werewolves of myth. Its muscular body seemed ready to explode with power.

"Roar!"

A deafening roar erupted from its throat as it raised its massive arms and pushed toward the sky with all its might.

Instantly, its body sank under the pressure, but the oppressive force surrounding Feng Qi abruptly vanished.

It became clear that the Domain Creature had momentarily resisted the crushing weight of the heavens.

Even the descending speed of the enormous black hand noticeably slowed.

Struggling to turn its neck, the Domain Creature glanced down at them with a fierce expression and growled, "Get over here now! We need to work together, or none of us will survive!"

Hearing this, Feng Qi immediately barked, "Lü Yue!"

Understanding the command, Lü Yue grabbed both Feng Qi and Qin Shikong, stepping onto Jianlan to swiftly fly toward the blue barrier in the distance.

As they approached the barrier, a small opening appeared, allowing them to enter seamlessly.

Once inside, Feng Qi saw numerous Domain Creatures positioned around the blue barrier, channeling their energy into maintaining its integrity.

"Roar!"

The earlier Domain Creature returned with a thunderous roar. Its body was now riddled with countless beads of blood, a sight both ghastly and heroic.

Witnessing this, Feng Qi realized one undeniable truth:

To survive against a Super-Domain Creature, the Domain factions had no choice but to join forces temporarily.

Otherwise, none of them would make it out alive.

"Each of you, pick a node and channel your power!" commanded a half-beast creature covered in scars, its voice echoing with urgency.

Without hesitation, Feng Qi nodded to Lü Yue and Qin Shikong, saying, "Cooperate for now—watch for opportunities later."

Approaching one of the blue runic nodes floating within the formation, Feng Qi mimicked the other Domain Creatures by placing his hand on it.

Immediately, he felt his spiritual energy rapidly being siphoned into the formation.

This array was remarkable.

The energies flowing into it were distinctly varied, reflecting the unique characteristics of each Domain Creature. Under normal circumstances, such incompatible energies would clash violently, potentially causing catastrophic explosions.

However, this formation had a unique core.

Feng Qi observed as the chaotic energies were funneled into the array's central eye, where they were converted into a unified blue energy.

Pulsing like a beating heart, the array's core redistributed this blue energy to stabilize and power the entire structure.

The figure managing the array was a shadowy entity.

Its life signature bore a striking resemblance to the technological beings backing the Institute of Technology.

But upon closer inspection, Feng Qi noticed a difference:

This shadowy being bore a luminous psychic rune on its forehead, which glowed with dazzling blue light.

If his deduction was correct, this creature was likely a member of the Psionic Race.

Only beings like the Psionic Race could design such an ingenious energy-conversion formation.

Above, the enormous black hand continued its descent.

The blue barrier's energy consumption surged in response, and the formation began to show signs of strain, with small cracks forming across its surface.

Noticing this, the Psionic entity retrieved a runic gemstone from its body and hurled it skyward.

A gap opened in the barrier, allowing the gemstone to pass through and hover outside.

The gemstone seemed to draw in external spiritual energy, absorbing vast amounts from the surrounding environment.

Once saturated, the gemstone embedded itself into the formation, merging seamlessly.

It acted like an auxiliary power source, continuously harvesting ambient energy to sustain the array.

But the black hand's descent showed no signs of stopping.

When the hand came within a hundred meters of them, the blue barrier could no longer endure.

"Prepare yourselves! The barrier is about to collapse. Use every means at your disposal, or we all die!" the Psionic Race member commanded grimly.

At those words, everyone withdrew their hands from the nodes.

Lü Yue and Qin Shikong returned to Feng Qi's side, and Jianlan once again emitted its brilliant light.

Boom!

The blue barrier shattered, scattering into countless particles of light that rained down like ethereal droplets.

Roars erupted from every direction as the combined forces of the Domain factions unleashed their powers in a desperate assault on the descending black hand.

The oppressive force returned with a vengeance.

Feng Qi's body tensed under the immense pressure, as though a mountain had been placed atop him. Every movement became agonizingly slow.

Even with all the factions dividing the weight of the hand's force, the pressure was overwhelming.

As the hand descended further, the crushing aura intensified.

Despite undergoing the Rune Dragon modification, Feng Qi's physical strength was still insufficient to withstand such overwhelming power.

At this point, the Bloodstone lay discarded at the edge of the array, unnoticed by anyone amid the chaos.

The entire region was now sealed by a black barrier. Unless this crisis was resolved, taking the Bloodstone and escaping would be utterly impossible.

Crack!

A sharp sound of bones breaking echoed in the air.

Feng Qi instinctively turned toward the source and immediately noticed a Domain Creature collapsing under the pressure.

Its body was visibly being compressed at an alarming rate, crushed under the immense force from above.

This was undoubtedly the result of failing to endure the oppressive pressure.

Even those who had managed to remain standing thus far weren't weaklings. However, no matter how strong, a weak body couldn't withstand such an overwhelming burden.

As the Domain Creature perished, Feng Qi felt his spiritual power spiraling out of control once again.

Invisible spiritual tendrils stretched outward, piercing the mental sea of the deceased creature, devouring its remaining spiritual essence and assimilating it into his own.

The stabbing pain in his body resurfaced with renewed intensity.

At the same time, Feng Qi noticed that the Mist Lord, who stood to his right, was also staring intently at the dead Domain Creature.

Moments later, the blood from the deceased creature turned to mist, drifting toward the Mist Lord, who absorbed it greedily.

Even at death's door, you're still sucking blood? I might as well start calling you "the Blood Siphon Machine."

Feng Qi couldn't suppress the urge to mock the Mist Lord internally.

As time passed, the oppressive force from above continued to intensify. Fortunately, Lü Yue had absorbed most of the burden for him, granting him brief respite.

However, one after another, Domain Creatures succumbed to the unrelenting pressure and died.

The creatures that fell were primarily those with exceptionally strong spiritual power but frail physical bodies.

Their deaths caused Feng Qi's spiritual power to grow uncontrollably, ballooning at an unprecedented rate.

If this keeps up, my spiritual power might actually tear free from my body entirely.

Faced with the worsening predicament, Feng Qi had no idea how to turn the tide.

He suspected that, in the previous timeline, Mu Qing must have been present during this escort mission. Only her strength could have allowed the group to escape, possibly even defeat the Super-Domain Creature.

Now that the mission had fallen to him, the odds of survival felt slim.

Even so, he couldn't shake the thought that the various Domain factions might still have hidden trump cards.

Perhaps it was these trump cards that had allowed figures like the Mist Lord and Qin Shikong to escape alive in the original timeline.

While these thoughts swirled in his mind, the spatial crack in the sky suddenly widened, and the descent of the massive black hand accelerated dramatically.

Feng Qi felt as though he had been struck by a sledgehammer. His body shuddered violently, and he spat out a mouthful of blood.

Simultaneously, the sounds of bones breaking filled the air.

Among the injured was Lü Yue.

Having borne most of the pressure, his body was now covered in tiny beads of blood, and his cracked bones gave way as he collapsed onto the ground.

Yet even in this state, Lü Yue clenched his teeth, using his mind to command Jianlan to remain suspended above them, continuing to share the burden of the crushing force.

Seeing this, Feng Qi's expression darkened.

Across all timelines, Lü Yue always sacrificed himself to protect him.

Looking at his brother's pitiful state, anger surged in Feng Qi's chest.

Waiting to die was never my style.

He stopped suppressing his spiraling spiritual energy and unleashed it completely.

Invisible tendrils of spiritual power lashed out, harvesting the residual spiritual essence of the fallen Domain Creatures and drawing it into himself.

The ongoing deaths of these creatures became the perfect nourishment for the explosive growth of his spiritual power.

His mental tendrils thickened visibly, surging with newfound strength.

However, this growth brought intense pain to his body, which now felt as if it might burst at any moment from the pressure of his unrestrained spiritual power.

Still, he gritted his teeth and endured.

The spiritual tendrils extended upward, brushing aside Jianlan, and formed an intangible barrier above the trio's heads.

While shielding them from the oppressive force, Feng Qi's spiritual energy drained rapidly.

Fortunately, his tendrils continued to siphon residual spiritual power from the surroundings, replenishing what was lost.

As more and more Domain Creatures perished under the pressure, his spiritual power continued its frenzied expansion.

At that moment, Feng Qi turned his gaze toward the Mist Lord.

The once-dignified figure now knelt on the ground, trembling under the crushing weight. Its pale face reflected its struggle, but it stubbornly muttered under its breath:

"I cannot die… I absolutely cannot die…"

The Mist Lord still had value. Feng Qi had no intention of letting it perish.

Extending a tendril, he wrapped it around the Mist Lord and pulled it toward him.

Freed from the oppressive force, the Mist Lord looked up at Feng Qi in astonishment and asked, "Why save me?"

"Shut up!" Feng Qi snapped, too preoccupied to bother with explanations.

His awareness of his body was fading. It felt as though his spiritual power had grown so vast that it was starting to detach from his physical form entirely.

"Qi-ge, what's happening to you?" Lü Yue asked weakly, sensing something amiss.

"This technique… it's too dangerous. I'm about to break out of my body!" Feng Qi replied through gritted teeth.

"Break out?"

"Yes, out of my body!"

As he roared in frustration, his skin cracked like porcelain, fresh blood seeping through the fissures.

Even more shocking, the blood was mixed with semi-solidified spiritual energy, its appearance chaotic and fragmented.

"Lü Yue, help me inject it!" Feng Qi shouted, his voice laced with urgency.

Lü Yue staggered to his feet, balancing precariously on one leg. Reaching into Feng Qi's backpack, he retrieved a metallic case.

Inside was a vial of Neural Activation Serum. Without hesitation, Lü Yue injected it directly into the back of Feng Qi's head.

The blue liquid in the syringe emptied in one swift motion.

Feng Qi's eyes widened as his thoughts became hyperactive. Memories flooded his mind, each one more vivid than the last, as though his brain had been fully unlocked.

But his body, on the brink of collapse, was beyond saving.

Through sheer willpower, he managed one final command:

"Cut me free!"

Lü Yue didn't hesitate. With a decisive swing of Jianlan, he severed Feng Qi's head cleanly. Immediately, he retrieved a spray bottle from the metal case and applied a regenerative mist to Feng Qi's neck wound.

The wound closed at a rapid pace.

The Mist Lord, who was observing from the side, stood frozen in shock, his eyes wide with disbelief. It was evident he couldn't comprehend the purpose of such a drastic act.

As Lü Yue ensured Feng Qi's brain was intact, Feng Qi's body reached its limit and exploded with a deafening boom. In his place stood a glowing humanoid figure composed of countless interwoven colors—a spiritual entity that had fully broken free of its corporeal bonds.

At that moment, Feng Qi entered an otherworldly state of being.

Even as he was reduced to a brain, he could still perceive the external world. In addition, he regained a sense of his "body"—though it was now a spiritual body, not his original flesh and blood.

It felt as if this spiritual body were a natural extension of himself.

Blinking instinctively, Feng Qi willed the spiritual body to move. To his relief, it responded seamlessly to his thoughts.

But he quickly noticed the instability of the spiritual form. Having absorbed a vast mix of different spiritual energies, the entity was volatile and on the verge of disintegration at any moment.

Moreover, Feng Qi's consciousness was rapidly fading, unable to maintain itself for long.

Recognizing the impending collapse, he made a bold decision—to unleash his spiritual energy entirely.

From his spiritual body sprouted countless tangible tendrils of spiritual energy that swept through the surroundings, devouring residual energy left by the fallen Domain Creatures. In response, his spiritual body expanded dramatically.

In an instant, the glowing entity grew to over four meters tall, and it showed no signs of stopping.

But the rapid growth came at a steep price. Feng Qi's consciousness weakened further, and he teetered on the brink of total dissociation from reality.

Just as he felt his connection to the world slipping away, a surge of pure energy flowed into his brain, revitalizing his fading consciousness. His awareness snapped back into focus.

Turning to locate the source of the energy, Feng Qi found the Mist Lord standing nearby, channeling its blood essence into him.

"I'll help you keep your consciousness intact. In return, you take me out of here!" the Mist Lord declared, its tone resolute.

With the infusion of blood energy, Feng Qi reestablished control over the spiritual body, which began growing once more. Within moments, the entity had swelled to over eight meters tall.

The enormous form flickered, alternating between solid and ephemeral, its instability glaringly evident. Yet, Feng Qi's spiritual strength had grown to the point where he could resist the pressure from above with ease.

For the first time, he truly experienced the immense power of a pure spiritual form.

Could the flesh really be nothing more than a shackle? he wondered. Is the spirit the true essence of existence?

In this state, his perception of the world was entirely different. There were no blind spots in his vision, and his awareness encompassed everything in his surroundings.

The only problem was that his consciousness still resided in his brain. If his brain were destroyed, he would perish entirely, falling far short of the so-called "Eternal Spirit" mentioned by Lin Ran.

But there was no time to dwell on these issues. The priority now was to escape the encirclement, bringing Lü Yue, Qin Shikong, the Mist Lord, and his brain to safety.

The spiritual body continued to grow, exceeding ten meters in height. It radiated intense waves of energy, pulsating outward and shaking the very space around it.

Testing his newfound strength, Feng Qi extended his mental tendrils to ensnare numerous nearby Domain Creatures, lifting them into the air.

Some of the stronger beings managed to break free of his grasp, turning to glare at the colossal spiritual entity with hostility.

Ignoring them, Feng Qi redirected his focus to the descending black hand above.

Concentrating his energy, he unleashed a massive pulse of spiritual force, creating an invisible shockwave that slammed into the giant hand.

Boom!

A thunderous explosion reverberated as the hand's descent visibly slowed.

Following this, countless tendrils of spiritual energy shot upward, colliding with the black hand and engaging it in a fierce struggle.

But the hand's power was far too overwhelming. Despite his best efforts, Feng Qi could not fully halt its descent.

From his heightened awareness, he noticed space fracturing near the black hand, forming cracks that healed almost instantaneously. The enormous pressure exerted by the hand was clearly distorting reality itself.

Realizing he needed more strength, Feng Qi continued to absorb residual spiritual energy from the fallen Domain Creatures. His spiritual body swelled to a staggering 13 meters, though its instability reached critical levels.

Recognizing the futility of directly confronting the black hand, Feng Qi shifted tactics. The spiritual entity soared toward his physical brain, enveloping Lü Yue, Qin Shikong, and the Mist Lord with its tendrils before racing toward the black barrier enclosing the battlefield.

He had only one goal now—to breach the barrier and escape with his allies.

The Domain factions, seeing Feng Qi's intentions, rallied behind him, surging toward the barrier in a desperate bid for survival.

Upon reaching the black barrier, Feng Qi unleashed a relentless assault, his tendrils battering the barrier with raw spiritual force.

More Domain Creatures joined the effort, each unleashing their own abilities to weaken the barrier.

But just as progress seemed within reach, the black hand, no longer restrained, accelerated its descent.

Feng Qi's heart sank. If the hand landed before the barrier broke, none of them would survive.

Making a swift decision, he released his companions from his tendrils and turned back toward the black hand.

"I'll hold it off! Break the barrier!" he shouted.

The Mist Lord, seeing Feng Qi's resolve, hesitated briefly before stepping forward.

"Wait! Let me assist you!" it called out.

Opening its mouth, the Mist Lord expelled all the blood essence it had absorbed, shaping it into a massive, crimson battle axe. Gray mist coiled around the axe's handle, lending it an ominous and imposing aura.

Feng Qi didn't hesitate. He directed his spiritual body to grab the axe.

At that moment, three glowing energy stones flew toward him.

"Don't resist their power," someone called out. "Let them merge with you—they'll stabilize your spiritual body and prevent it from collapsing!"

Feng Qi, who was initially ready to deflect the incoming energy stones, suddenly paused.

As the three stones embedded themselves into his spiritual body, a surge of boundless spiritual energy poured from them, automatically guiding his spiritual power into a stable trajectory. His previously unstable spiritual body steadied significantly.

Turning toward the direction from which the stones came, Feng Qi saw the Psionic Race member who had thrown them. Soon after, other Domain factions joined in, stacking augmentation spells and blessings onto him.

Within moments, his spiritual form underwent a dramatic transformation.

His right hand wielded a massive battle axe forged entirely from concentrated blood essence, while his back bore three glowing gemstones that stabilized his spiritual form. Around his neck hung a necklace resembling beast teeth, and his left middle finger was adorned with a black ring designed to amplify spiritual power.

In addition to these physical enhancements, numerous spells surrounded him like radiant halos, continuously enhancing his strength.

Now encircled by a multicolored aura that radiated divine might, he looked like a god descended to the mortal realm.

Raising his gaze to the sky, Feng Qi shot upward with explosive force.

The blood-red battle axe slammed into the descending black hand, momentarily halting its downward trajectory. The ring on his left hand emitted dazzling light, and countless tendrils of spiritual energy unfurled from his back, whipping violently against the giant hand.

The halos surrounding him pulsed in harmony with each attack, continuously empowering him. Under this relentless assault, the black hand's descent slowed further.

Meanwhile, below, the various Domain factions launched a desperate assault on the black barrier in a bid to shatter it. Yet, despite their combined efforts, the barrier remained unyielding.

Despair began to creep into the hearts of the Domain beings, but the Psionic Race member stepped forward once again.

Signaling everyone to cease their attacks, he retrieved a circular device and pressed it against the barrier.

Moments later, intricate patterns of glowing lines appeared on the barrier's surface. These patterns connected into a vast network, with energy visibly flowing through the lines.

"Target the glowing energy nodes," the Psionic Race member instructed. "These are the array's energy transfer points. Destroy them, and the array's power will weaken significantly."

Upon hearing this, the Domain beings adjusted their strategy and began focusing their attacks on the glowing energy nodes.

This time, their efforts bore fruit.

Following the Psionic Race member's guidance, they traced the flow of energy and concentrated their attacks on the weak points. The barrier began to ripple with energy, each strike producing more visible damage.

Seeing that their efforts were working, the Domain factions were reinvigorated. With renewed hope, their attacks grew fiercer.

After an intense barrage, a sharp cracking sound pierced the air. The black barrier finally shattered, leaving a gaping breach.

Feng Qi, who had been closely monitoring the situation, immediately abandoned his struggle against the black hand. In a flash, his massive spiritual form descended, sweeping up the Mist Lord, Lü Yue, and Qin Shikong. Without hesitation, he darted through the breach and escaped.

With Feng Qi no longer restraining it, the black hand resumed its rapid descent. The Domain beings who failed to react in time were caught off guard, many vomiting blood under the sudden, overwhelming pressure.

Feng Qi paid them no mind. His spiritual body, now in a critical state of disintegration, had shrunk back to eight meters tall. He knew he had to leave the area quickly.

After flying for over ten miles, he finally stopped. His spiritual form, shedding fragments of energy with every moment, was on the verge of complete collapse.

Landing on the ground, Feng Qi carefully placed Lü Yue, Qin Shikong, and the Mist Lord down.

"Why did you save me?" the Mist Lord asked, staring at Feng Qi's floating brain with a mixture of curiosity and disbelief.

"Do I need a reason? Maybe I just find you tolerable," Feng Qi replied with a faint chuckle.

The Mist Lord opened its mouth as if to respond but hesitated, seemingly at a loss for words.

At that moment, Feng Qi's spiritual body exploded into countless fragments.

The Mist Lord didn't waste any time. With a swift motion, it ascended into the sky and fled.

"That guy… so predictable," Feng Qi muttered, unable to suppress a wry smile as he watched the Mist Lord vanish into the distance.

With the Mist Lord gone, the blood essence it had been channeling into Feng Qi dissipated. His consciousness began to fade again, signaling his imminent end.

Realizing his time was short, Feng Qi turned to Lü Yue.

"Ah Yue, it's the end of the line for me in this timeline. You'll have to keep moving forward without me," he said, his tone calm but resolute.

"Understood," Lü Yue replied, his voice thick with emotion.

"Not even a heartfelt goodbye for your Qi-ge?" Feng Qi teased, attempting to lighten the mood.

"I don't know how to," Lü Yue admitted, his voice trembling. His reddened eyes betrayed the depth of his grief.

Feng Qi laughed heartily. "You're a good brother, Lü Yue. Take care of yourself."

"I will," Lü Yue said, nodding firmly.

Turning his gaze to Qin Shikong, Feng Qi spoke again. "Hey, old Daoist, I've got one last question for you before I go."

"Ask away. I'll answer if I can," Qin Shikong replied, his expression pensive.

"That fortune you read for me back at Victory Academy—what did you see? And why wouldn't you tell me?"

Qin Shikong fell silent, his eyes reflecting a deep sense of nostalgia. After a moment, he sighed and looked toward the setting sun.

"I used every method I knew—eight characters, hexagrams, Qimen Dunjia—but every reading was the same. Your life was full of turbulence, your paths unclear, and your fate an enigma. When I gazed at the stars to divine your destiny, I saw countless branches, each more convoluted than the last. I couldn't help but wonder—what kind of end could possibly match such a chaotic journey?"

Hearing this, Feng Qi smiled.

"The younger me had grand ambitions. I wanted to be a cultivation researcher, to contribute to the advancement of the field. But now… my dream is much simpler. I just want a future—an ideal future with no end."

Qin Shikong's expression softened. He let out a long sigh.

"Feng Qi, it's been an honor walking this path with you."

Feng Qi grinned. "Let's do it again in the next timeline."

As the sun dipped below the horizon, painting the sky in hues of orange and gold, the three of them sat on the ground, gazing at the heavens and talking about the future.

But gradually, Feng Qi's voice faded into silence.