414: Chapter 405 The Sixth Incarnation: Heavenly Venerable (Ninety-Three)

"Fellows, it has been a long time."

The voice of the Dao Monarch of Destiny rang out slowly, not loud, yet carrying a strange penetrating power that echoed clearly in the depths of every Most Ancient Dao Lord's mind.

He did not deliberately exude any pressure, but when those gray eyes swept across the crowd, they naturally carried an indifference and detachment, as if looking down upon the ages and holding the reins of destiny.

"By luck, I have won half a move against the Heavens."

The Dao Monarch of Destiny continued, his tone so flat that it was as if he were stating a trivial matter, rather than having just completed an earth-shattering "resurrection" that involved devouring his own Dao, reversing life and death, and shaking the heavens.

Beneath that flatness lay an arrogance that went bone-deep and felt entirely natural—towards Heaven and Earth, towards destiny, and towards the ancient existences before him whom he called "Fellow Daoist," it was all the same.

He lifted his head slightly, his gaze once again cast upon the radiant, heaven-piercing "throne of the dao." In his gray, Chaos-filled eyes, the brilliant light of the throne was reflected, yet not a single ripple stirred, as if it were not the ultimate, unreachable opportunity, but merely an object... already destined to belong to him.

"This ladder, it is acceptable."

The Dao Monarch of Destiny commented softly, as if reviewing a newly acquired item. His feet did not move, yet his figure rose naturally upwards—not by flying, nor by teleportation, but through a more profound method of movement, as if he "should" have been in that position all along and was merely "returning" to it.

With every step he took, the light of the heavenly ladder beneath his feet rippled slightly, as if welcoming him, resonating with him.

The boundless killing tribulation entwined around the nine Ancient Venerables quietly retreated and faded away as he passed, as if fearing a king, daring not to touch him in the slightest.

"This seat..."

He had already reached the end of the heavenly ladder and stood before the "throne of the dao," just one step away from the throne that symbolized Soul Transformation and bore endless Dao Rhyme.

He reached out his hand, not to touch it, but to gently brush the air, as if feeling the flow of Dao Rhyme upon it. His long gray hair stirred without wind, and the Light and Shadow of destiny on his Dao robes swirled faster.

"...it is worthy of me."

The tone was still flat, but the meaning it contained caused the nine Ancient Venerables below to tremble violently, with both fury and chill rising simultaneously!

Worthy?

What did this mean?

It meant that in the eyes of this revived Dao Monarch of Destiny, the "Soul Transformation opportunity" and "throne of the dao" that the oldest and most powerful existences in the heavens pursued crazily, risking boundless killing tribulations to seize—this ultimate symbol that carried the path beyond Dao Lords to the supreme Realm, this existence that seemed forged by the Origin of the Great Dao itself, inscribed with the supreme truths of Heaven and Earth, and exuding a Dao Rhyme that made even Dao Lords intoxicated and submissive—

actually, was merely barely "worthy" of him!

It was as if the value of this throne did not lie in the "Soul Transformation" and "supreme" status it represented, but solely in whether it was "worthy" of the Dao Monarch of Destiny!

What arrogance this was!

What haughtiness!

A confidence that was nearly heretical, placing himself above the "Soul Transformation opportunity" and viewing the supreme Dao fruit as a plaything!

It was as if he were not pursuing "Soul Transformation," but rather the Realm of "Soul Transformation" itself, this opportunity, this throne, were waiting for his favor, waiting for his "arrival," waiting for him to decide—Are you qualified to carry my Dao of destiny?

"Destiny! You are arrogant!"

"The throne of the dao is the manifestation of the Great Dao, the proof of the supreme! How dare you insult it so! Who do you think you are? Having devoured two Incarnations, do you truly believe you have reached the Transcendent Realm and can look down upon the Great Dao?!"

"Won half a move against the Heavens? By luck?" The fire of wisdom burned crazily in the eyes of the Dao Lord of Order, as if he wanted to see through the Dao Monarch of Destiny from the inside out. "What a good 'luck'! What a good 'won half a move against the Heavens'! Destiny, you laid out plans across the ages, severed your own Dao, used Incarnations as firewood, used the heavens as a chessboard, incited boundless killing tribulations, and finally returned through Nirvana by borrowing this Soul Transformation opportunity... Such a heaven-shocking feat, yet in your mouth, it is merely 'luck'? This clearly shows you view Heaven and Earth as nothing, the ages as a chessboard, and us... all as ants!"

"Worthy of you? Hahaha!" The Dao Lord of Time let out a sharp, grating laugh, filled with boundless anger. "Destiny, your arrogance is even more nauseating than your schemes! This throne, this Soul Transformation opportunity, is ownerless, gifted by the Great Dao, to be obtained by those with affinity! When was it your turn to decide if it is 'worthy' or not? Today, I will let you know who is truly 'worthy' of this throne!"

Although the other Ancient Venerables did not speak, the erupting fury and cold murderous intent in their eyes already said everything.

The words of the Dao Monarch of Destiny were not only contempt for their eternal pursuit but a complete negation and trampling of the meaning of their existence and their pursuit of the Dao!

However, facing the murderous intent and angry rebukes below that were almost boiling over, the Dao Monarch of Destiny remained as calm as an abyss.

He did not even turn his head to look at the nine Most Ancient Dao Lords who had locked their energy onto him and were ready to strike.

The Dao Monarch of Destiny slowly withdrew the hand that had been brushing the air above the throne and placed it behind his back.

His long gray hair and the Dao robes flowing with the Light and Shadow of destiny drifted slightly under the blowing of invisible Dao Rhyme.

He tilted his head slightly, his gaze seeming to pierce through the "throne of the dao" and cast into the deeper, more indescribable depths of the void, as if staring at some higher-level existence, or perhaps merely... examining himself.

"Manifestation of the Great Dao? Proof of the supreme?"

The voice of the Dao Monarch of Destiny was still flat, yet it carried an indescribable penetrating power that clearly overwhelmed all the roars and murderous intent.

"Heaven and Earth are unkind, treating all things as straw dogs. The Great Dao is ruthless, treating all living beings as chess pieces. This throne is merely one of the 'manifestations' of a certain node, a certain possibility, under the operation of the Great Dao."

"Soul Transformation? Transcendence?" The Dao Monarch of Destiny shook his head gently. In his gray, Chaos-filled eyes, it seemed to reflect the scene of countless brilliant talents in the endless river of time, succeeding one another in pursuit of the ethereal Realm of "Soul Transformation," only to all turn into dust in the end. "All are Delusion, all are appearances. True 'Transcendence' is not ascending to a throne of external objects, but... I am destiny, I am the track of the Great Dao, I am... 'Inevitability' itself."

He turned slowly and finally cast his gaze toward the nine Ancient Venerables below. In those gray eyes, there was no contempt, no mockery, only a pure, extreme indifference—a calmness as if looking at a few slightly prominent "variables" in a predetermined trajectory.

"You all pursue this throne, merely blinded by appearances, confused by Delusion. Even if you obtain it, you would only temporarily occupy the position; in the end, it is not the true essence."

The voice of the Dao Monarch of Destiny rang out in the heart of every Ancient Venerable like the unchanging sound of eternal destiny.

"And as I return, this throne shall serve as a temporary resting place for me, a stepping stone to verify my Dao. That it is 'worthy' is its fortune, and it is merely that the 'Great Dao node' manifested by this throne happens to temporarily align with the track of my Dao."