Chapter 2022 - 1533: The Elderly and Frail Jiang Dali, Fate’s Question! What Is Fate?

"Good!"

After the first ’good’ tinged with a hint of surprise, the second, more exhilarating and joyous ’good’ echoed once more, striking the heart of Jiang Dali, who had aged to near exhaustion from traversing the river of time.

Bang—

A circle of dust billowed.

The aged, loose flesh of Jiang Dali’s foot stepped upon solid ground, and his tall, burly frame seemed shrunken due to the slackness of his flesh, resembling an aged, twilight Lion King. Though his majestic might had not diminished, it was not without some frailty and sorrow of old age.

But at least, he stood on the Ninth Floor of the Human Emperor Tower, the price for which was extreme weakness and decrepitude, with time having stripped away his strength and lifespan...

He raised his head, deep lines furrowing his brow as he looked across.

Opposite him, the burly Emperor also rose with his hands behind his back, the oppressive, overwhelming momentum receding like the tide.

He slowly turned his head, revealing a square, firm, dignified face, his nose as upright as his back, the tightly closed lips manifesting an indescribable pride and nobility. His gaze, like lightning, fell upon Jiang Dali, and with a slight smile and a familiar tone, he spoke slowly.

"Jiang Dali!"

"Emperor... Seeing you, truly a challenge..."

Jiang Dali’s lips moved, producing an aged, hoarse voice unlike his own.

The Emperor smiled faintly, his laugh plain yet his tone filled with emotion, ambling with hands behind his back, "The five-hundred-year mark hasn’t arrived yet; I wasn’t supposed to meet you so soon. But, despite fighting against the heavens for five hundred years, sometimes I have to admit, man’s plans indeed fall short of heaven’s calculations. Even I didn’t foresee today would come so soon... Yesterday felt just like yesterday..."

"What do you mean?"

Jiang Dali was stunned, unsure if his aging mind had become too slow to understand, or if the Emperor’s words were inherently too vague and profound to grasp.

But at this moment, the Emperor certainly fulfilled all his imaginations of this world-renowned foremost expert and peerless figure.

Before meeting him, the Emperor seemed as a towering peak forever unreachable, inspiring awe in all the world, as if simply approaching its base was a challenge akin to a horse racing to death.

Yet upon truly meeting him, there was a sense of long-standing familiarity and ease, undoubtedly a figure of great charm.

Facing his question, the Emperor maintained a faint smile, but a closer look revealed a frigid calmness in the depths of his eyes.

Suddenly, he turned to face Jiang Dali directly, his demeanor radiant as he slowly said, "Do you believe in Fate?"

"Fate?"

Jiang Dali frowned, "You mean a Heaven-defying Destiny Chart?"

The Emperor remained silent, still gazing at Jiang Dali with that icily calm yet subtly smiling and familiar look, as if conveying a message—’Keep searching for the answer within!’

Jiang Dali’s eyes slightly narrowed, shaking his head impatiently, "I dislike mind games the most. If you, your majesty, have any instructions, just say it."

"Hahaha..."

The Emperor suddenly laughed heartily, then slowly shook his head as if in contemplation, nodding while turned away, "Jiang Dali, it’s been many years since someone spoke to me like this, but that is just you, that is Fate.

A long time ago, when I was young, I was just like you, fearing nothing, neither heaven nor earth."

Jiang Dali mused trouble, even growing more impatient.

He could feel the weakness and exhaustion in his body, even to the point of mental depletion. He had paid such a price to meet the Emperor, not to hear of the Emperor’s former glories or to listen to his many reflections, but to seek the many truths he wished to know.

Having already paid a price more terrifying than death, now facing this world’s first person, there were many things he had to clear up, of course, thoroughly.

Immediately, he raised his hand in salute, speaking roughly, "Your majesty, Emperor, you keep speaking of Fate. I, Jiang Dali, a mere rough man, don’t understand Fate, nor do I wish to understand what Fate is.

Are you saying, from when I was born in this world to standing before you, this is Fate?

Then I want to know, what should my Fate be hereafter?

From now on, what will you do in the face of this twisted world?

Since you are determined to defy heaven, clearly understanding the truth of this world, what exactly do you intend to do?

And I... Why exactly was I reborn, trapped in this world? I believe, you should know best!"

Jiang Dali nearly unleashed all the ultimate questions that had lingered at the depths of his heart for many years.

This lengthy barrage of questions was not typical of his style but was entirely in line with his character—he wouldn’t feel at ease without blurt out all his inquiries in one go.

The Emperor’s majestic stature stayed turned away from Jiang Dali, shaking his head in lament, "These questions, I would like to answer you, but alas, the time has not yet come. Knowing the answers too soon, given your character, might not be a good thing, potentially extinguishing even the last glimmer of hope."

Jiang Dali’s eyes showed a keen glow as he stepped forward, "Then when exactly is the right time? Must I wait until the five hundred years have passed? Should I now just leave and wait until the five hundred-year mark is met, or, with what’s left of my lifespan, I might not even see that day?"