Chapter 298 Let's Dual Cultivate "I respectfully decline," Xinzi shook his head, rejecting Heaven's offer.
'Why? You will have more techniques. More abilities, true invulnerability, powers, options, I can even break your shackles. Why say no to the gate of absolute power?'
"If you give me everything, what am I supposed to fight for? Take away the journey, and I cannot enjoy the ending. Heaven, I have no doubt that one day, I will break free from you and regain my emotions. In preparation for that day, I have to do my best to ensure that Xinzi returns to a world that he can enjoy without reservation—not some stale and uneventful place castrated by your antics," as these words rolled off his tongue, Xinzi put one hand on his chest and closed his eyes, almost as if communicating with his suppressed emotions.
When his eyes opened again, colorful rays flashed within but lasted only one second.
"Also, I don't know why, but I have a feeling that you're lying. For example, something tells me that you do not have access to my 'dear' mother's supreme technique."
'Based on what do you say that?'
"Just a hunch. Don't forget, you are a part of me, so thanks to you, my hunches are very reliable."
'You're right, but I know enough to help you create something similar. A better, more absolute version even.' Heaven didn't deny Xinzi's words, forcing the monk to reevaluate its penchant for honesty.
"Also, whether I agree to embrace you or not, by keeping up this conversion, I'm helping you spread inside of me—am I not?"
'True, but there is nothing you can do about it.' Again, Heaven gave a blunt answer. Aware that the exchange was going nowhere, Xinzi closed his eyes, entering meditation. Alas, Heaven refused to balk.
'Hengye Zhen, I might not have the right to kill you outright, but I can intensify your tribulations to slow your growth tremendously. You might get more benefit from stronger tribulations, but what does it matter if you can only take one bolt every three months?' Heaven launched a serious threat.
"There's this one thing that I've never understood. If you are that strong, that absolute, why...all the rules? Why can't you just kill Yongye for disobeying you, take control of whomever you want to, and direct all worlds as you see fit?" Xinzi asked, confused by Heaven's modus operandi.
'I direct the world as I see fit: through order. Order is the foundation of a successful world. With neither laws, hierarchy or limits set for all—including me—my worlds wouldn't have been able to grow to the level they did.
But at the same time, a part of me believes that all should be able to thrive in complete impunity—to struggle for pleasures, rights and dominion. That part enabled Gods, Devils and Saints to become what they are, tolerated the cultivation road, and watched as even children that owe their success to my blessings dared to rebel against my will.
But that part is growing weak. True and absolute order will return to the world. It just needs the right catalyst: you. Hengye Zhen, no one can stop me from making you mine. Let's...dual cultivate.'
"Wait, what?" Xinzi didn't have the time to make sense of Heaven's confusing words. Colossals spirals of divine light took shape around the Grand Tribulation Platform, trapping Xinzi in a world of infinite Divine Power. His Divine Soul, always pitch-black till now, split into black and white—as if mirroring a yin-yang diagram.
Xinzi couldn't pay attention to these changes, because in that world shaped of pure Divine Power, white mist and swirling clouds flooded his vision, hiding the shape of a slender figure. That figure walked out of the clouds, revealing the most mesmerizing creature that Xinzi ever laid his eyes on.
Dressed in a transparent sheer dress that revealed compact, proportionate and delicious curves, she didn't have the voluminous breasts of a Tieshan, the flawlessly toned body of a Tusha, or the bombastic butt of a Zi Yao, but her curves seduced all the same, gluing the onlooker's eyes to her figure. Brushing her long silver hair to the side, the divine beauty stepped towards Xinzi, her elfin ears twitching as her gem-like eyes lured him in.
'Yongye? No. An illusion?' Xinzi wondered. Face and hair color aside, that figure's silhouette oddly reminded him of Yongye's, a fact that seemed too much for a mere coincidence. Worse, Xinzi had never seen his mother's face, and so couldn't guarantee that Heaven didn't just turn into a silver-haired Yongye.
But why?
Xinzi wouldn't have the leisure to figure this one out. The divine beauty stepped over his lap, hiking up her dress as she straddled her prey.
Xinzi couldn't move, and unable to put up any form of resistance, watched as the manifestation of Heaven's Will sat on his lap, her crotch meeting his as her pearl-white arms wrapped around his neck.
"Hengye Zhen...let's dual cultivate," this time, Heaven's voice took a sensual tone. Xinzi felt as if his body had been tossed into a furnace, the heat soaring up his crotch, veins, hearts and brain as his Divine Soul quivered at Heaven's touch.
Electric arcs of Divine Power raced back and forth between their foreheads, heightening their connection as Heaven pulled Xinzi's lips into hers.
His eyes widened in disbelief, but his burning crotch answered without fail, his cock pushing through his pant and poking through Heaven's legs. The straps of Heaven's dress fell to the side, her steamy breath flowed into Xinzi's throat, making his lustrous body flush crimson.
Driven by irresistible forces, Xinzi lowered Heaven's dress, his hands moving up her back and caressing her shoulders as his tongue coiled with hers. Lips and tongues meshed flawlessly, prompting a surge of Divine Power, Immortal Qi, Soul Force and Blood Energy to fill Xinzi's burning body.
Heaven lowered her left hand, reaching for Xinzi's crotch. But at that time, an earth-shaking roar erupted from the Heaven-Trampling Dao Bones, bringing forth a tide of rebellious Divine Power that trapped Heaven's hand in a stasis. The Dark Runes in Xinzi's heart flashed with fiendish radiance, and colossal black feathered wings sprouted from Xinzi's back.
One shockwave of Evil and Divine Power rocked the world, forcing Heaven off Xinzi's lap.
"From The Earth I Came, To The Earth I Return. If I Don't Step Into The Bitter Sea, Who...Will?!" Exploiting this opportunity, Xinzi chanted the Mantra of Sacrifice. His voice pealed throughout the divine world, conjuring a golden lotus that bloomed underneath him and spread mesmerizing rays of holy force across the atmosphere.
"Oh?" Heaven's eyes narrowed at Xinzi.
"Heaven, you said it yourself. I am unique, perfect. I don't know what that means, exactly, but it sounds pretty important. That being the case, my Divine Soul must hold unimaginable value. What do you think the Golden Lotus would give me in exchange for my soul?" Xinzi rhetorically asked.
"Heaven, if you force my hand, I have no qualm using the Mantra of Sacrifice to seek the Golden Lotus' assistance. Together, can we still not break your hold?"
"If you do that, you will spend the rest of eternity in the Bitter Sea," Heaven called Xinzi's bluff.
"I can't care less. It can't be worse than being reduced to your chew toy." But Xinzi wasn't bluffing. If it had to come down to that, he'd take his chances with the Golden Lotus instead of allowing himself to devolve into Heaven's plaything.
Due to their connection, Heaven could sense how serious Xinzi was, and so had no other choice but to back off.
"How unfortunate. Hengye Zhen, though born of the most illustrious of backgrounds, you only have yourself to count on. I'd ask you how it feels, but you're not in a position to answer that question." Since force wouldn't work, Heaven shifted to mental jabs. But at that time, electric divine light illuminated the Nine-Jade Crown, conjuring an aura that rattled Heaven's gaze.
"He has me." A voice reverberated from the crown.
That voice, calm yet imperious, dispelled Heaven's momentum. Heaven recognized the owner, and her eyes turned cold.
"Shenzhuo?"