Chapter 562: Chapter 552: He Became the Sole One Beyond Cause and Effect

"Nine Divine Punishment Halls, we have poured immense effort into each hall, doing plenty of clandestine work."

"Logically, that River Guardian shouldn’t discover them, at the very least not so quickly, and it certainly shouldn’t be possible to eliminate three Divine Halls in such a short time!"

"What baffles me the most is that it just so happens to be my three Divine Halls!"

The second Chaotic Human Shadow continued: "I know you have some grievances against me, but is there a need for such revenge?"

"You should know, we are all in the same boat now. How does this revenge benefit you?"

"If you want to defect to him, I advise you to do so sooner rather than later!"

With these words, the third shadow’s face turned somber, the surrounding void beginning to warp and fracture: "I advise you to speak and act cautiously. I admit I have grievances against you, but I won’t do anything to jeopardize the bigger picture."

"I hope you can give me a reasonable explanation for why you suspect me."

.....

"If I remember correctly, your subordinate Jiang Bai was captured by him."

"Jiang Bai was among your more central figures, one who had access to many core secrets."

"It was because of Jiang Bai’s capture that you lost an avatar."

"Am I wrong?" The second Chaotic Human Shadow spoke slowly.

"You mean... the leaked information came from Jiang Bai?" the third Chaotic Human Shadow said slowly.

"It was you who deliberately leaked it through Jiang Bai’s hand," the second shadow asserted decisively.

He was already fuming with anger by this point.

"Are you crazy!"

The third Chaotic Human Shadow also bellowed directly at the second shadow, causing the entire void to tremble.

Seeing the atmosphere turn tense, the first Chaotic Human Shadow, who had been silent not far away, finally spoke leisurely: "Things were just a coincidence."

"What’s important now is how to fill this gap."

With these words, the second shadow also calmed down instantly.

"You figure it out. I don’t want to deal with it anymore."

"I also don’t have the energy to handle it..."

The second Chaotic Human Shadow’s voice was low, as if he had aged many years.

The Nine Divine Punishment Halls were founded by the three of them, each establishing three Divine Halls, consuming tremendous effort.

Now, with the destruction of the second shadow’s three halls, it meant that all his efforts had turned to nothing, a devastating loss that hit him hard.

"What do you mean?"

"Are you just giving up?"

"During these years of playing against that River Guardian, haven’t I also suffered great losses?"

"I put a lot of effort into nurturing quality chess pieces, and more than half were killed by him. Have I ever complained?"

The third Chaotic Human Shadow also said angrily.

Jiang Bai, Tianluo... and those thirty-six Lords of the Divine Domain, all perished at Su Mu’s hands.

.....

"In the short term, it’s impossible to patch things up. We don’t have that much time...."

"Now, with only six halls left in the Nine Divine Punishment Halls, progress will be greatly delayed..."

"But, we can barely maintain the smooth running of the plan, it’s just that... we no longer have any room for error, and we can’t afford to lose any more halls."

At this point, the first Chaotic Human Shadow said to the third shadow: "I have three good candidates under me, if you don’t mind, I’d like them to assume the roles of Hall Masters for your Fourth Hall, Fifth Hall, and Eighth Hall."

After he finished speaking, the third shadow fell into silence.

"Rest assured, all benefits from the divine punishment sacrifices of your three Divine Halls will still go to you. I’m just ensuring the safety of the halls and the smooth execution of the plan without affecting your interests."

After listening, the third shadow slowly responded: "Okay."

If it won’t affect his interests and can reduce the loss of his chess pieces, why not?

"Brother Dao indeed has a broad perspective."

The third Chaotic Human Shadow clasped his hands with a smile.

Hearing this, the first Chaotic Human Shadow also sighed softly.

He too was driven by necessity to use those three important pieces of his.

To ensure the plan was not affected, he had to guarantee the absolute safety of the remaining six Divine Halls, so by using his own people, he felt a bit more at ease.

....

Listening to the conversation between the two, the second Chaotic Human Shadow also fell deep into thought, feeling extremely gloomy.

The loss of the Ninth Hall and Seventh Hall was not surprising, but the Third Hall seemed odd to him.

The Ninth Hall was forcibly taken away by that River Guardian, which couldn’t be helped.

The Seventh Hall was destroyed by himself to prevent it from being of benefit to the enemy.

But the destruction of the Third Hall was very strange....

Jiang Li initiated the Heaven-Falling Array, sacrificing the Gate of Divine Punishment, and chose to clash head-on with the River Guardian, which seemed heroic.

But he had a fair understanding of Jiang Li.

Considered one of the few "smart people" among his ranks, Jiang Li was also one of the most unique, with outstanding talent and a mindset quite different from others.

....

He closed his eyes and began to deduce.

After a while.

He slowly opened his eyes, a black gleam flashed in his pupils, unconsciously clenching his fists.

So that’s how it is.....

When the Third Hall was destroyed, Yue Ying was also involved, which he had known for a long time.

However, because Yue Ying didn’t report in time, he didn’t know the details.

Because he only discovered now that the Realm Stone of the Third Hall had not fallen into the hands of the River Guardian, but had already scattered across All Heavens and Myriad Realms.

Only when he now went to look for it did he discover that the Realm Stone had turned into an ordinary stone, making it impossible for him to pinpoint its location.

It was thus apparent that Jiang Li was likely not dead..... 𝓯𝙧𝙚𝒆𝙬𝙚𝒃𝙣𝙤𝒗𝓮𝓵.𝙘𝙤𝙢

Only, he could no longer track Jiang Li, as there was no longer any trace of Jiang Li’s cultivation aura across All Heavens and Myriad Realms.

There’s only one possibility, Jiang Li abandoned all cultivation and used the Realm Stone to sever all ties of cause and effect, becoming an ordinary person, blending into All Heavens and Myriad Realms.

If he really wanted to find him, it was still possible, but it would require a significant effort, severely affecting the current plan.

Forget it, forget it.....

It’s just a chess piece, lost is lost.

Jiang Li’s guess was accurate; the lord he pledged allegiance to could easily deduce and pinpoint his perfect golden cicada shedding plan.

He also guessed that the lord would not concern himself greatly over this mere chess piece.

....

At this moment, on a certain continent of All Heavens and Myriad Realms, the wandering Jiang Li looked up at the void.

The corners of his mouth curved up in a smile.

It seems...he bet correctly.

At this moment, a grand "plan" formed in Jiang Li’s mind.

This plan, only he could carry out.

Because.....

Now, in All Heavens and Myriad Realms, Jiang Li had become the only one who entered the game and exited perfectly; he became, in the truest sense, a person "outside of fate."