Chapter 654: Mandate of Heaven and Celestial Dao

“Mandate of Heaven?” Jin Yuanbao asked in confusion, “What is the Mandate of Heaven?”

The Confucian Saint took a sip of wine and said with a smile, “The Mandate of Heaven is the Mandate of Heaven, the center of an era, a convergence required for the functioning of a world, carrying the mission of an era, and you are the Mandate of Heaven for this era. Everything will revolve around you; you are the fourth Mandate of Heaven in this world.”

“The fourth?” Jin Yuanbao asked, “Who were the first three?”

“The first was the Taoist Ancestor, the second was the Buddha, and the third was me,” said the Confucian Saint. “The three of us each represented three different eras. In our respective eras, we each had our missions. The mission of the Taoist Ancestor was to bring the flame of civilization to this barren world.

The Buddha’s mission was to rapidly advance civilization, moving it forward quickly, while my mission was to disperse an already peaked civilization, creating a situation where a hundred schools of thought contended, advancing in multiple directions.”

Jin Yuanbao hurriedly asked, “Then what is my mission?”

“I don’t know,” the Confucian Saint shook his head, saying, “Only when your Realm has advanced and you’ve received the will of the world will you know what your mission is. But, I do have some guesses.”

“Please advise me, teacher,” Jin Yuanbao said.

The Confucian Saint sighed and said, “Originally, there shouldn’t have been another Mandate of Heaven. Ten thousand years ago, when I created the Confucian Dao, establishing the various schools of thought, I connected with the will of the world.

At that time, the will of the world clearly told me that I was the last Mandate of Heaven, because the world had become complete and no longer needed to give birth to a Mandate of Heaven. It would only produce children of fortune in different eras to keep the world vibrant.

However, a thousand years ago, when I again connected with the will of the world, it told me the fourth Mandate was about to appear. After that, there was no further contact from the will of the world; perhaps the birth of the fourth Mandate has overextended the great world!”

Jin Yuanbao furrowed his brow, bewildered by the Confucian Saint’s words. Still, he didn’t rush to ask further but listened quietly.

“The will of the world is a law in the operation of a great world, not a living being. It only activates and gathers what the world needs according to specific rules,” the Confucian Saint continued. “For example, I became the Mandate of Heaven because the world at that time needed a hundred flowers to bloom, a hundred schools of thought to contend. So, I appeared.

Originally, this world was supposed to have only three Mandates of Heaven. Now that a fourth has emerged, it can only mean there’s a big problem with this world, one that requires the fourth Mandate to save it. Currently, the only problem is that this world can no longer bear the covetousness of the Celestial Dao, and wants to save itself!”

Jin Yuanbao was even more puzzled and couldn’t help asking, “Teacher, what exactly is the Celestial Dao? Shouldn’t it be the same thing as the will of the world?”

The Confucian Saint smiled and said, “I also thought so initially until I ventured beyond the Human World and took a glimpse of the vast sea of worlds outside. That’s when I realized that the will of the world and the Celestial Dao are as different as earth and sky.

The reason you think the will of the world is the Celestial Dao is because you’re deeply immersed in the Human World, only seeing this particular world. But in fact, under the Celestial Dao, various worlds float like dust in the vast universe, countless and endless. The Human World is just one of innumerable worlds in the infinite universe.

Worlds are also distinguished by size; the smallest is the world of drifting sand and is the most common. These worlds are numerous and very small, meaning their rules are imperfect. Above them are the Small Thousand World, Middle Thousand World, and Great Thousand World, which have increasingly perfect and larger rules.

All these worlds share a common trait, which is that each has its own will of the world. However, there is only one Celestial Dao. So, do you understand now?”

Jin Yuanbao was stunned, taking a long time to regain his composure, and asked, “So, teacher, when you said you were hunted by the Celestial Dao for tens of thousands of years, was it this Celestial Dao that pursued you?”

“That’s right, it was this Celestial Dao,” the Confucian Saint nodded, “though it’s not as exaggerated as tens of thousands of years. It’s just that the flow of time is different. When I ascended beyond the world, I realized that ascension was merely an illusion, a lie crafted by the Celestial Dao to cultivate its food, so I fled immediately.

The Celestial Dao couldn’t possibly focus only on me. In its eyes, it’s like a shepherd herding a flock of sheep, and some rebellious ones run off. It might just lash out a few times without much care. That’s how I had the chance to escape back to the Human World. The so-called tens of thousands of years of pursuit was merely due to differing time flows.”

Jin Yuanbao took a deep breath and asked, “Teacher, how vast is the Celestial Dao?”

“This…” the Confucian Saint was silent for a moment, then replied, “How can an ant fathom the vastness of the sky?”

Jin Yuanbao’s expression was solemn as he said, “Teacher, you say my mission might be to save the world. Surely it doesn’t mean I’m supposed to defeat the Celestial Dao?”

“You’re overthinking,” the Confucian Saint said. “Throwing the entire Great Thousand World of the Human World wouldn’t withstand a single blow from the Celestial Dao. How could there be such a mission? What you face should be an avatar of the Celestial Dao.

The Celestial Dao is too vast and too distant from various worlds. To better observe, it has placed avatars in worlds it is interested in.”

Jin Yuanbao realized, “So, my mission might be to defeat the avatar of the Celestial Dao, effectively removing the Celestial Dao’s eye planted in the Human World?”

The Confucian Saint nodded, then shook his head, saying, “Originally, I thought so, but the operations over the years have left me puzzled.

In the normal trajectory, you should encounter a lifelong adversary, the one who is the Celestial Dao’s avatar. You might win or lose, but in the process, ostensibly, it will be a struggle between two normal people, not displaying the Mandate and the Celestial Dao!”

Jin Yuanbao was bewildered, “But teacher, you’ve already told me I am the Mandate of Heaven?”

The Confucian Saint nodded, “Because that avatar of the Celestial Dao has already regained its consciousness as the avatar. Today, it even attempted to send a signal to outside the sky.”

Jin Yuanbao was perplexed, “You mean the adversary, supposed to fight against me, has regained the Celestial Dao’s consciousness and sent a signal to the main body of the Celestial Dao outside the sky? But why would it do that? Aren’t it and the main Celestial Dao connected?”

“Because I have trapped it in the Human World,” the Confucian Saint mused. “I just don’t understand how it regained consciousness. Additionally, the operations in the Human World over the years don’t seem to relate to you as the Mandate.”

Jin Yuanbao touched his chin and murmured, “Teacher, have you considered that perhaps the Martial Emperor Gu Zhan is the real Mandate?”