I Am the Fated Villain Chapter 1396

Chapter 1396: Choose one of them, the river of fate stirs up ripples

Clearly, the elixir in the white porcelain bottle possessed not only the healing effects mentioned by Ling Huang but also the ability to help her sort out her meridians, cleanse her marrow, and strengthen her bones once again.

Although it was impossible for her to achieve a direct breakthrough in her cultivation, melting the rich medicinal power within would undoubtedly allow her to enhance her current abilities. This kind of elixir had the potential to turn decay into divinity; even an immortal king would likely be tempted to fight for it.

During her time at the Ten Thousand Clans Arena, despite being seriously injured, almost no one paid her any attention. She would simply retreat to a corner to lick her wounds and endure in silence.

Previously, no one would have offered her such a precious elixir. While it was likely that such a valuable item meant little to Gu Changge, to her, it was incredibly precious.

“It seems you are still quite wary of me, but you can rest a.s.sured.”

“I bear no malice toward you. The reason I want to bring you out of the Ten Thousand Clans Arena is simply that I see you as a valuable seed. It would be a shame to ruin your potential here.”

“You have a much broader horizon than being stuck in this filthy, stinking gutter.”

Gu Changge noticed the gray-haired girl in front of him was overly cautious, so he shook his head slightly and spoke casually.

At his words, the gray-haired girl lifted her gray eyes to glance at him briefly before quickly looking away and lowering her head. Her long, smooth hair fell over her palm-sized face, while her small, round chin had a flawless complexion like ice and snow, resembling an ice beauty carved from thousands of years of ice.

She remained silent, standing there quietly, but an unusual chill seemed to envelop her, appearing almost natural. She didn’t fully trust Gu Changge’s explanation. After years of living in the arena, she was no naive girl oblivious to the world.

On the contrary, she was smarter than many and more ruthless and decisive with herself.

“What was your original name?”

Gu Changge seemed to find her att.i.tude somewhat frustrating. He rubbed his temples and sat up straight.

Upon hearing the question, the gray-haired girl moved her lower lip as if she wanted to respond but then shook her head slightly and remained silent. In truth, she had almost forgotten her name.

In the dark confines of the arena, each day was consumed by endless fighting, and her sole focus was on survival. The only thing she still remembered was that she came from the Muge clan of the Qin Mang galaxy and had several younger sisters who needed her protection.

“It’s fine if you don’t remember; I planned to give you a new name.”

“The name Hui Yan is really ugly. I don’t like it, and you probably don’t like it either.”

Gu Changge’s reaction was not surprising at all. He contemplated for a moment and then asked, “Do you have a name you prefer?”

The gray-haired girl had never antic.i.p.ated that Gu Changge would bring up this topic.

At first, she thought Gu Changge was merely making casual remarks, but she didn’t expect him to take it seriously. The feeling of being valued by someone surprised her, yet at the same time, it warmed her heart.

“No… no.”

After a moment of thought, she shook her head and replied, her voice sounding dry as if she hadn’t spoken in a long time. She had intended to remain silent as she usually did, but for some reason, she found herself subconsciously answering Gu Changge’s question.

If anyone who knew the gray-haired girl from the Ten Thousand Clans Arena were present, they would be astonished to witness this scene. Was this still the strange, indifferent freak they knew?

“If not, let me think of one for you.”

Gu Changge didn’t seem surprised by her response at all; instead, he appeared to be deep in thought.

Hearing this, the gray-haired girl raised her eyes again to glance at him secretly.

But it seemed she was afraid of being noticed by him, so she quickly withdrew her gaze, as if nothing had happened. She didn’t understand why Gu Changge treated her this way.

In her view, everything in this world revolved around the cycle of cause and effect. If there was an effect, there had to be a cause; nothing good came without reason. There were no real pies falling from the sky.

What could be the reason for Gu Changge’s treatment? Did he have ulterior motives, or was it out of pure compa.s.sion?

“What do you want from me?”

The gray-haired girl asked herself in her heart.

Her background? She was merely an ordinary member of the Muge clan. Before Gu Changge took her away, she had been a dead woman walking in the arena, not even considered a servant in the eyes of some prominent families.

If it was to showcase her beauty and body, that was even less likely. In the Ten Thousand Clans Arena, her body reeked of blood and filth, and her face and body were marred by ugly scars. Even the maids responsible for cleaning the prison were disgusted by her appearance.

Gu Changge’s ident.i.ty and strength meant he could have any girl he desired with just a beckon.

The stunning beauty by his side was so captivating that she seemed almost unreal. The gray-haired girl shook her head inwardly, unable to grasp the situation.

“How about calling you Hui Yi or Hui Tong? Well, Hui Tong doesn’t seem quite right either. In that case, Mo Tong might be more suitable.”

Gu Changge’s voice suddenly broke through her thoughts, pulling the gray-haired girl back to reality from her speculations. She raised her head to look at him, momentarily dazed, as if she hadn’t fully processed his words. Hui Yi? Hui Tong? Mo Tong?

Was he truly serious about naming her?

“What? Don’t you like these names?”

Gu Changge asked with a smile, taking a sip from his teacup.

The gray-haired girl wore a complex expression for a moment before shaking her head. Although these names sounded rather random, they were indeed chosen based on her current characteristics and not selected haphazardly.

“I… like it,” she replied softly.

“Then you can choose one of them yourself,” Gu Changge said with a smile.

Of course, he hadn’t chosen these names at random. One of these three names was meant to be the one the gray-haired girl would ultimately select for herself. To avoid creating karma and confusion, Gu Changge had glimpsed the gray-haired girl’s future at the moment of naming. He had chosen the other two names arbitrarily to give her a choice.

In the future, she would become a master of the way of killing, possibly the one who had traveled the farthest down that path in both ancient and recent times. Even without his interference, she would still be able to reach that stage.

Gu Changge himself did not wish to interfere too much; when naming her, he intended to prevent unnecessary causal confusion that could lead to strange changes in the fate of immortal civilization and draw the attention of higher-level beings.

“Then… let’s call it Mo Tong.”

The gray-haired girl appeared to be contemplating her choice seriously. A trace of entanglement flickered in her eyes, as if she also held a deep fondness for another name. Ultimately, though, she chose the one that was more flexible and pleasant to the ear.

“Are you sure?”

Gu Changge was taken aback; he hadn’t expected her to select that particular name. Among the three, it was indeed the most pleasing, yet in the future, she would refer to herself as Hui Yi, not Mo Tong.

Although he didn’t want to interfere with the trajectory of her destiny, allowing her to grow naturally, it seemed that her choice at this moment had shifted her path. The future was uncertain, and no one could truly predict it. The future Gu Changge had glimpsed just moments ago quietly changed the instant her thoughts shifted.

A flutter of b.u.t.terfly wings in this world could lead to a change in the times, let alone these matters. This was the eternal law of heaven—self-circulation, without error.

“I am sure.”

The gray-haired girl replied softly, a hint of happiness evident in her voice regarding the name.

“Okay, then from today on, you will be called by this name.”

Gu Changge didn’t say anything more. At that moment, the fate of the gray-haired girl remained clear in his eyes, showing little change due to these two names. However, he knew that since fate had shifted in this instant, corresponding changes would inevitably follow in the future.

This made Gu Changge contemplate other possibilities. Although it had been a whim to glimpse the gray-haired girl’s future to gauge her potential, he hadn’t antic.i.p.ated that her choice would differ from what her future self would embrace.

In other words, at this very moment, the fate of the gray-haired girl had already triggered a change in the entire fate of the immortal civilization. The lake had begun to ripple. As a result, it could lead to subtle and unexpected changes in the future.

Destiny is the most illusory concept. Many Dao Realm beings believe they can see through their own fate and that of others, but what they perceive is merely a snapshot of the present—the fate of themselves and that creature. The future of that creature may be subject to countless twists and turns due to unpredictable events.

This world is interconnected, and any single individual can undergo numerous changes due to shifts in the fate of the world. Everyone influences everyone else; it’s just a matter of scale. It is because of these changes that the so-called variables come into existence.

Of course, to truly understand and control a person’s destiny, one must control all the destinies of the world to which that person belongs. Everyone’s fate is intricately connected. The existence of the gray-haired girl is closely tied to the entire immortal civilization. In the future, she would grow into a figure who could not be overlooked, even within the immortal realm.

If Gu Changge wanted to genuinely control her destiny, he would need to oversee the fate of the entire immortal civilization. This was no easy task. It is already challenging to control the fate of others, let alone one’s own destiny.

Thus, for many Dao Realm beings, this presents a question that feels almost like a reb.u.t.tal. The so-called control over one’s own destiny is, at best, merely pulling one’s fate out of the long river of destiny and grasping it in one’s hands. It does not equate to having a clear vision of one’s own destiny, controlling future achievements, or knowing all one’s fates, disasters, and experiences.

The stronger a person’s abilities, the larger the world that accommodates them, and the more people and existences at the same level are interconnected. When one truly controls their own destiny, it is essentially about seeing through the fate of the world they inhabit. The past may be easier to perceive, but predicting the future remains challenging—this is fundamentally the reason behind it.

Gu Changge returned to his thoughts, no longer entangled in this aspect. The fate of the immortal civilization was like a lake; although it had stirred some ripples, who could say which fish had caused them? This river of destiny didn’t imply a lack of ups and downs; the waves were ever-present, constantly shifting due to various factors. He realized he had been a bit too cautious.

“From now on, you can live here with peace of mind. You can leave whenever you wish; no one will stop you, and I won’t give you any orders. Of course, if you want, you can also return to your clan to visit your clansmen.”

Gu Changge spoke casually, glancing at the gray-haired girl, who seemed a bit happy about her new name. Now she should be called Mo Tong.

When Mo Tong heard this, she snapped back to reality, as if struggling to believe his words.

Here’s the refined version of your text:

“You… Aren’t you worried that after I leave, I won’t come back?” she couldn’t help but ask.

Gu Changge maintained a casual smile and replied, “It’s the same to me whether you come back or not. You can rest a.s.sured; I don’t have the time to spare to send someone after you. Where you choose to go is entirely your freedom. I brought you out of the arena, and I don’t expect anything in return.”

“It’s just that if you leave, it means there will be no relationship between us.”

Hearing these words, Mo Tong was momentarily stunned; the sentence lingered in her mind. She seemed to awaken suddenly at this moment. To Gu Changge, her existence or absence made no difference, and it would have no impact on him. Yet, she had been preoccupied with worry and contemplation just moments ago.

On the contrary, for her, following Gu Changge would open up a broader future that countless cultivators and creatures could only envy.

Mo Tong opened her mouth to say something, but Gu Changge had already waved his hand, signaling Ling Huang to take her back. What he had just said was indeed true: taking Mo Tong away from the arena was a matter of convenience. Her existence or absence held no influence over him at that moment. Of course, Gu Changge knew that it was highly unlikely for her to leave.

Ling Huang took Mo Tong back to temporarily reside in the palace complex, but for Gu Changge, this was merely a small episode.

Meanwhile, Elder Zhuowu of the Zhuo Clan had just sent someone to Gufeng Ancient City with an invitation letter, seeking to invite Gu Changge to attend the disciple acceptance ceremony. Due to the arrival of some important figures from the Hun Clan, Elder Zhuowu had to receive them alongside many elders, making it impossible for her to extend the invitation in person.