Upon hearing the You Patrol Envoy utter this term, An Jing was first stunned, then realization dawned on him—could it be that this You Patrol Envoy, like his own master, was also from the Endless Heavens?
It appeared that what his master had said was indeed correct; the Endless Heavens truly did not distinguish between good and evil. As long as one harbors a trace of an exploratory spirit, they would accept anyone, not sparing even the Demon Sect!
An Jing cast a discreet glance at the Da Chen emissaries and Taiming Sect members on both sides, neither showing any signs of surprise, as if what the You Patrol Envoy said was all merely natural and to be expected according to the Heavenly Principle.
Clearly, these visitors were not from the Endless Heavens. They had not even heard this statement.
Given that, An Jing didn’t mind having a further discussion with the other party.
"Endless Heavens... It seems the internal division within the Tianyi Demon Sect is quite severe. Why convey such a matter to me through other means without talking directly, forcing me to come here?"
The You Patrol Envoy saw that An Jing fully understood his intent, and the face hidden beneath the hood seemed to wear a hint of a smile: "Do you have a cooperative relationship with the Wind Patrol Envoy (North)? Or at least a non-interference agreement? Indeed, we are not on the same side; the Divine Sect is not that closely knit, but rather follows individual paths without interfering with each other, occasionally collaborating."
"I am not targeting you, nor am I representing the Divine Sect in inviting you. To be honest, it doesn’t concern me whether you join the Divine Sect or not. My experiment merely requires a Divine Mandate, and you happen to be the first Divine Mandate of this era."
The You Patrol Envoy’s direct words made An Jing curious—he had received an invitation from the Endless Heavens not by mere coincidence. In search of the truth that lay deeper than the superficial, he was driven to seek the real story.
The You Patrol Envoy answered An Jing’s question: "Naturally, it is about the Fate Pattern. The experiment of creating artificial Fate Patterns."
An Jing’s expression tightened.
—As expected, is the Tianyi Demon Sect researching this aspect?
Noticing An Jing’s reaction, the You Patrol Envoy spoke with a light laugh: "Evil Mixed Strange God Heaven... Fate Patterns are powers bestowed by the Heavenly Dao, growing stronger as a person matures."
"Ancients have said that the Fate Pattern is the Root Seed planted by Heaven and Earth. If this is the case, then might there be some Root Seeds that are different from what others receive from the beginning? Why, and by what standards, does the Heavenly Dao differentiate people?"
"If there is a standard, then could we not artificially touch this standard, align with it, and then steadily create Fate Pattern Pieces?"
"I and the predecessors of the Divine Sect have been researching the mysteries of the Fate Pattern. Recently, we have roughly come to a conclusion: regardless of the Divine Mandate and Heavenly Mandate, the rest of the Fate Patterns seem divinely bestowed, but are in fact entirely created by humans."
"Mixed Fate and Lifebound Fate, in fact, have no distinctive features. Taking seeds as a metaphor, they are just the most common ’large and small tree species’. Without any special nutrients invested, they will grow into ’Giant Spirit Fate’, ’Divine Movement Life’, ’Vajra Life’, ’Longevity Fate’ and other robust physical constitution Fate Patterns that accelerate human speed, strengthen the human body, and extend human lifespan."
"This is, of course, a type of Fate Pattern formed in response, carrying the hopes of the Life Holders, but compared to the ’Immortal Music Fate’, ’never forget’, and other Fate Patterns, they are purer, encompassing only the original desires of humanity."
"So far, we haven’t found a way to grow Fate Pattern Pieces in a completely pure environment, but we can be certain that it is not the ’Fate Pattern that makes you a craftsman’, but rather a craftsman’s consistent actions that allow the Fate Pattern to grow into a form that possesses his characteristics."
The You Patrol Envoy said these words frankly, while the envoys from Da Chen and the Taiming Sect listened in silence—perhaps, they too wanted to know the research results of the Tianyi Demon Sect, after all, the religious sector organization that delves deepest into the research of Fate Patterns in this world is their line: "The Path of Fate Patterns exists because of the individual, arises from desire; emerges from the heart, grows stronger from resolve."
"Evil Fate and Abnormal Fate are no exceptions. Just like in lands where the Poisonous Fiend thrives, the plants that grow there also contain potent toxins and malign spirits. The holders of Abnormal Fate often have many special experiences and harbor thoughts of ’not wanting to be human’."
"My predecessor once placed human babies into the nests of wild animals for them to rear, and among those who developed Fate Patterns were mostly ’Abnormal Fate’, the remaining twenty percent were Mixed Fate and Lifebound Fate related to the fundamental desires of human nature, with only a very small portion being Evil Fate. To date, there has only been one Strange Mandate, known as the ’Master of Ten Thousand Beasts’."
"However, as the research deepens, the proportion of those with Abnormal Fate in the experiments continues to increase. Recently, I’ve discovered that the true driver behind the formation of Abnormal Fate is not simply dancing with wild beasts, longing to become a beast or to transcend human physical strength—instead, it’s the desire to ’abandon a certain inherent identity and completely transform into another form of life’, despite fully knowing that one is human, yet not being accepted by human society or acknowledged by the beast’s community, unable to fully integrate into the animal pack."
"This is the true origin of Abnormal Fate."
"And it is an extremely broad concept. Even those living in large towns and villages may not wish to be human, turning into some sort of Evil Ghost. For example, among beggars, many aspire to become the soul-seeking ghosts of their rumors, killing the head beggars and mafia bosses that exploit them. Similarly, poor scholars also hope to become officials; this overly extreme longing also turns them into various Demon Monsters, a point shared with Evil Fate."
"Even the most ordinary children, burdened by the arduousness of studying and martial arts training, long to transform into birds, to dance with the clouds and the moon, to soar with the birds. This can also cultivate Abnormal Fate, giving rise to wings. In the fishing communities, there are many who grow fish scales and gills and eventually disappear into the deep sea."
"Not to mention in great disasters, because of hunger and malice, many potential Life Holders on the verge become engulfed by Evil Fate and Abnormal Fate, and the bloodlines of ancient Immortal Gods hidden within their veins are awakened, becoming the foundation for their abnormal physical forms."
The You Patrol Envoy spoke these words with a tone of pure curiosity, yet the overwhelming scent of blood seeped from his language.
—The Tianyi Demon Sect truly lives up to the name of a Demon Sect. These experiments, these data collection efforts, behind each word lies heaps of corpses and seas of blood, built upon countless human lives.
An Jing’s eyebrows furrowed, while the You Patrol Envoy seemed indifferent about these figures: "This is a very interesting discovery, the research on Abnormal Fate is profound and rich. Human society is filled with transformations and distortions; there will always be those who choose to give up being human due to the influence of others and the ways of the world."
"Therefore, as long as humanity exists, Abnormal Fate will not vanish. The Divine Sect has quite a comprehensive cultivation process for Abnormal Fate and Mixed Fate. In your last cohort at the Hanging Fate Manor, there were quite a few with the adaptability for Abnormal Fate. If they were in my hands, most could awaken their Fate Patterns. To merely turn them into Blood Food, I can only say the Wind Patrol Envoy of the west is too wasteful, not understanding the value and preciousness of life."
—In the end, they were merely experimental subjects toyed with by you.
An Jing wanted to say this, but it was only his perspective, for in this world, there are people who want to awaken their Fate Patterns, risking their lives to do so. As someone with Divine Mandate and Heavenly Mandate, if he tried to dissuade them, he would be scolded by these people for not recognizing a good thing when they see it, and they would think that he is blocking their Path.
Fate Patterns, after all, are the world’s sole means to gain power; without power, there is no right to survive. This is an unavoidable truth.
Thus, An Jing exhaled and calmly said, "So, you have also researched the cultivation process for Strange Mandate, and now you want to use me, with Divine Mandate, for your experiment?"