Chapter 83: At the End of Fate Lies Paradise

After being ruthlessly put through her paces by Bai Yujing, Tia returned to the changing room.

She slipped off her sky-blue feathered robe and white T-shirt, revealing alabaster skin. Her wide-legged white trousers came off slowly, and her purple-black underwear, stretched taut, had already sunk slightly into the cleft of her buttocks, the exposed skin flushed with a delicate red.

She resembled a ripe peach, so full and tender that the slightest squeeze would yield sweet nectar to quench one’s thirst.

Turning her head, Tia eyed her reddened backside and couldn’t help recalling the ferocity of Bai Yujing’s recent moves. The burning pain seemed to travel across time, making her draw a sharp, involuntary breath.

She truly wondered what went through Bai Yujing’s mind when inventing her techniques. Was she simply bored out of her mind?

Other people’s self-created moves each had their unique features, and while not always complementary, they at least refrained from sabotaging one another. Bai Yujing’s techniques, however, often seemed designed to fight themselves.

On one hand, she developed defensive spirit garments that could ward off anything, and absolute barriers that reflected all attacks. On the other, she invented the Sacred Light Hundred Strikes of the Northern Dipper Fist and the Armor-Piercing Style of the Azure Sword of Nine Clouds, expressly crafted to break through enemy defenses.

The spear to break the shield.

This time, the spear had won.

Or perhaps it was simply that they were too unskilled, their mastery of “shields” far inferior to Bai Yujing’s proficiency with “spears.”

Incompetence is the original sin.

Tia sighed inwardly. If only she were stronger, the one nursing a bruised and swollen rear right now would be Bai Yujing.

One day, when she ascended to Paradise, she would ensure that today’s humiliation was repaid twofold.

Though, more likely, she would simply blast Bai Yujing to smithereens. With opponents this dangerous, to hesitate even a second was to show disrespect for one’s own life.

Thinking of that distant future, Tia tossed her sweat-drenched uniform aside and retrieved a pair of black casual pants from the wardrobe.

She bent down, pulled on the pants quickly, and inhaled sharply. Her backside was so sensitive now that even the lightest touch sent a wave of fiery pain through her.

To make matters worse, her figure was so alluring that any trousers she wore would inevitably cling tightly—unless she deigned to wear those ridiculously baggy “bucket pants.” But such ugly clothing was something Tia had always shunned.

Fortunately, after the initial sting, she grew used to it and the sensation faded.

She pulled on a warm orange top, grabbed her uniform, and walked out.

…

The corridor was cool and still, the lights unlit, casting everything in a muted, tranquil gloom.

Liu Shuangling and Zhu Ying emerged from the changing room, their steps light but betraying a subtle stiffness.

Tia watched the two walk, the corners of her mouth lifting slightly. If she’d been the only one to take a beating, she would have felt thoroughly aggrieved. But with all three of them sporting bruised behinds, a sense of camaraderie soothed her pride.

A mischievous glint flickered in her emerald eyes as she strode forward and tossed her uniform into her washing machine. Her gaze lingered on Liu Shuangling. Without warning, she swung out and slapped Liu Shuangling smartly on her pert backside.

Smack! The instant her hand made contact with the dress fabric, a powerful force rebounded from within.

An absolute barrier?

Tia realized this just as her right hand was flung back, her palm tingling faintly.

Worse yet, she was left defenseless.

In a flash, Liu Shuangling struck back, her palm landing with a resounding slap on Tia’s peach-shaped rear.

“Aaah!” Tia howled in pain, her legs snapping straight as her casual pants stretched tight like black yoga leggings, accentuating the perfect lines of her lower body.

Her chest heaved, as though the warm-hued flowers of her shirt might be torn asunder.

Drawing a deep breath to steady herself, Tia grumbled, “Is it really necessary to protect that spot with an absolute barrier?”

“As you can see, it’s very necessary,” Liu Shuangling replied lazily.

She’d been on guard, wary that someone might try to play a trick. After all, they’d just been soundly thrashed by Bai Yujing, and it would be a long time before vengeance could be had on her. For now, a little amusement could only be found at the expense of their “collaborators.”

Tia sighed and glanced at her junior, the little apprentice.

Zhu Ying’s face was impassive, the blood-red mandala pattern in her eyes slowly spinning—a silent warning.

Fine. If she tried anything with this one, she’d only suffer for it herself.

Abandoning her attempt at finding levity in hardship, Tia pressed the start button on the washing machine and said with a smile, “See you tomorrow.”

With that, she stepped away down the hall, her stride fluid.

…

Sunset clouds blazed over the western sky, dyeing streets and rooftops in golden-red light.

Rainwater pooled on the ground, reflecting the sky in shimmering, watercolor-like patterns.

Tia moved like the wind through the streets, finally halting in front of a fortune-telling shop with a peculiar decor.

A “Closed for Business” sign hung in the glass window, but she paid it no heed and pushed the door open.

Inside, the walls were festooned with animal bones and an assortment of bizarre trinkets, the overall atmosphere dark and mysterious.

Behind a long table sat a diminutive old woman. The moment she saw Tia enter, she sprang up with surprising agility and called out, “Lady Tia, you’re here!”

“Mmm.” Tia nodded.

Recalling her conversation with Bai Yujing that morning, she asked, “Granny Wen, I’m a layman when it comes to divination. I wanted to ask—can a single person’s act of prying truly cause fate itself to collapse?”

Wen Xin was puzzled by the question, but answered honestly, “Lady Tia, if I may say so, your question is truly astonishing.

The river of fate is formed by countless people, animals, even stones, and the planet itself. It has no self-awareness, merely a vast chaos.

To put it more simply, it’s like artificial intelligence. We diviners are like hackers, using various means to obtain information we were never meant to have. Premature aging and sudden death are the punishments fate metes out to us.”

She paused, then continued, “We all exist within the river of fate. Tell me, how could one possibly lift oneself? So, the idea that a single glance could cause the river of fate to collapse is absolutely impossible. All things run their course within the tracks of destiny.”

“I see,” Tia mused.

Was Bai Yujing’s statement earlier meant to mislead them, to make them believe she couldn’t divine the future? But it didn’t seem so.

If she was telling the truth…

If even a professional like Wen Xin had to clarify, could it be that Bai Yujing was truly able to step outside the river of fate?

Tia pondered in silence.

Wen Xin went on, “However, the river of fate does have an end. Paradise is where all destinies flow. Those who ascend to Paradise will master and rewrite every destiny. This is the mission fate has bestowed upon you, Lady Tia!”

At these words, a feverish zeal lit up her face.

Tia’s breath caught, but she quickly composed herself. Now was not the time for such concerns.

What mattered most was doing what she could, here and now.

She stepped forward and said, “Granny Wen, let’s begin training the Final Release.”