Chapter 483: Demon Power

Zhao Xiongge had only mentioned the other matter in passing. He had made this trip for one reason, not to concern himself with anything else. He countered, “What for? You know perfectly well. Why pretend you don’t?”

Niu Youdao said, “You’re the one who wants to do it. Don’t force it onto my shoulders.”

“You and I both came from the Shangqing Sect. In the end, neither of us can truly let it go. Why deceive yourself?”

“That’s you who can’t let go. I let go long ago.”

Zhao Xiongge suddenly reached out and snatched the sword from Niu Youdao’s hand. With a clang, he drew it halfway from its sheath and held it beneath the moonlight. The four characters engraved on the blade, Loyal Heart, Martyr's Blood, were clearly visible. He sheathed it again and tossed it back. “Dong Guo Haoran’s sword. If you had truly let go, why would you still keep it at your side?”

Niu Youdao planted the sword against the ground. “If you insist on thinking that way, what can I do?”

“Since I came here, you owe me an explanation. You owe the Shangqing Sect one as well. Otherwise, you won’t get past me.”

“Are you threatening me?”

“Not threatening you. Cleansing the sect!”

“You were expelled from the Shangqing Sect long ago. What sect are you cleansing?”

“Then call it standing up against an injustice. Is that not allowed?”

“Of course it is. Your fists are bigger. If you insist on twisting my neck and forcing me into it, naturally you can. I’m only curious about one thing. Since you care so much, why not handle it yourself? With your strength, wouldn’t that be easier than relying on me? Why force me to be your beast of burden?”

“Stop dragging the conversation elsewhere. You know perfectly well that my position is awkward. My ties with the Demonic Sect are impossible to disentangle. I slaughtered too many people back then and made too many enemies. Everyone thinks I belong to the Demonic Sect, and because they fear the Demonic Sect behind me, they don’t dare move against me lightly. If I openly returned to the Shangqing Sect, I would only bring trouble down on it.”

“Then aren’t you a member of the Demonic Sect?”

“My ties with the Demonic Sect run deep, but I have never joined it.”

“Senior, you have your concerns, and I have mine. I assume you know the position I’m in now. You know what the Shangqing Sect and Prince Ning, Shang Jianbo, set in motion back then. I have to distance myself from the Shangqing Sect. Nor can I simply ignore whether everyone in Nanzhou lives or dies. Otherwise, how many lives would it take to fill this pit?”

“At first, I didn’t pay much attention to you. Now the facts have proved that you possess the ability. I believe you can find a way to balance it.”

“No man can move against the tide. I can only maneuver within the rules. Under the weight of the greater trend, what do I have that could possibly balance it?”

“The Shangqing Sect is on the verge of falling apart. The moment you let go, its people will lose heart completely. If the Shangqing Sect is left with no road of retreat, I won’t leave you one either.”

Zhao Xiongge had made himself perfectly clear: if Niu Youdao refused to help, Zhao Xiongge would not let him off.

Tu Han, who was tending to Yin’er, looked up and watched Niu Youdao’s reaction.

Niu Youdao remained calm, his gaze fixed on the distant darkness. Slowly, he asked, “Senior, is it the Shangqing Sect you want to preserve, or the people of the Shangqing Sect?”

“What difference is there? If the people of the Shangqing Sect are gone, is there still a Shangqing Sect?”

“Aren’t you and I people of the Shangqing Sect?” Niu Youdao asked in return.

Zhao Xiongge turned to look at him, somewhat surprised. This fellow was actually admitting that he himself belonged to the Shangqing Sect. Still not quite understanding, Zhao Xiongge asked, “What do you mean?”

Niu Youdao said, “If I remain, the Shangqing Sect remains. If I prosper, the Shangqing Sect prospers.”

He raised his sword and drew it halfway as well, letting the words Loyal Heart, Martyr's Blood gleam beneath the moonlight for Zhao Xiongge to see. “The great tide beneath Heaven rolls vast and mighty: those who follow it prosper; those who defy it perish. Neither you nor I have the power to act against the great tide beneath Heaven. Clinging to the faintest thread of hope is meaningless. We have to find another road. If we refuse to let go and keep walking a path we know is a dead end, then everyone can only embrace one another and die together. It may be cruel, but when the time comes to let go, we must let go. Only when you can put something down can you pick it up again; only by giving something up can you gain something in return. The Shangqing Sect has come to this point through no one’s fault but its own, and it must pay the price. Let me leave you with one phrase, Senior: unless the old is broken, the new cannot be established!”

Clang! The sword slid back into its sheath, as decisive as his resolve.

Zhao Xiongge fell silent. He had understood what Niu Youdao meant. It did not matter if the present Shangqing Sect perished. So long as Niu Youdao himself could rise and prosper, he could rebuild the Shangqing Sect at any time.

Tu Han lowered his head. His mood was as heavy as the expression on his face.

Then Zhao Xiongge suddenly chuckled. “What a sharp tongue. I came here to persuade you, and instead you ended up persuading me. Dong Guo Haoran truly did take in a fine disciple. No wonder you were able to break through obstacle after obstacle and establish yourself. Fine. I admit you’ve persuaded me.”

Niu Youdao was secretly delighted and hurried to say, “It wasn’t I who persuaded Senior. Senior simply understands the greater picture.”

“Spare me that. And don’t celebrate too soon.” Standing beside him, Zhao Xiongge turned and stared at him. “I’m too easily swayed by emotion. I can’t be as calm and rational as you. Put harshly, I can’t be as heartless. If I could, I wouldn’t have been expelled from the Shangqing Sect all those years ago. My master raised me from childhood and showed me kindness as weighty as a mountain. I cannot stand by and watch the people of the Shangqing Sect die. Find them a road to survival. If you can do that much, I won’t force you anymore.”

Niu Youdao was silent for a while before giving a slight nod. “I’ll see what I can do.”

“I’ll take that as a promise.” Zhao Xiongge nailed the matter down before Niu Youdao could explain, then immediately changed the subject. “You came here to make trouble for Chao Jing?”

Niu Youdao answered with a question of his own. “Is there someone from the Demonic Sect around me?”

Zhao Xiongge shook his head. “You can’t really call him a member of the Demonic Sect. He was once, but later left it. As for what happened, it concerns someone else’s private affairs, so I’m not in a position to say much. But there is one thing I can guarantee you. There is only one reason he stays beside Hongniang: to protect her. He bears her no ill will whatsoever. Everything he has done has been to protect her, so you can rest easy on that point. For your own good and Hongniang’s, don’t touch him. Keep him around. If circumstances require it, the person behind him will step in to help the two of you. Tang Yi was able to escape this time because that person acted. That is all I can tell you. As for what you do with it, decide for yourself. I won’t interfere in this sort of matter.”

Now that was interesting. Niu Youdao mulled it over for a while, then suddenly chuckled. “So someone’s been guarding the flower all along. But there’s one thing I don’t understand. If he has that kind of ability, why not bring Hongniang to his side and protect her there?”

Zhao Xiongge refused to take the bait. “I’ve said what I should say. Conduct yourself accordingly.”

Niu Youdao pointed at Tu Han instead. “Then what about him? Is he an informant you planted inside the Shangqing Sect?”

Zhao Xiongge gave a simple explanation. “In his early years, he was one of Prince Ning Shang Jianbo’s personal guards. Later, he was crippled because of me. While treating his injuries, I discovered that he was suited to cultivation, so I accepted him as my disciple. Before I could take him back to the Shangqing Sect, my own trouble erupted, so I entrusted him to Su Po. Among the people of the Shangqing Sect, Su Po is now the only one who knows.”

Niu Youdao gave an acknowledging sound and could not help looking Tu Han over a few more times.

“I’ve said what should be said, and even what shouldn’t. That’s enough. Go. And don’t forget what you promised me.” Zhao Xiongge sighed.

His mood was somewhat melancholy, all because of Niu Youdao’s phrase: unless the old is broken, the new cannot be established.

Niu Youdao suddenly cleared his throat and pointed at the unconscious Yin’er on the ground. “Senior, why don’t you take this woman with you?”

Zhao Xiongge stared. “I have neither kinship nor connection with her. Why would I take her?”

“Consider her a meeting gift from me.”

Giving him a woman? Zhao Xiongge froze for a moment, then his face gradually darkened. “I cannot afford such a gift! I advise you to do less of this kind of shameless, sordid business. Go back!” He waved to Tu Han as well.

Tu Han rose and said, “Master, this demon cultivator has two kinds of demon qi in her body.”

Niu Youdao had known that long ago and thought nothing of it.

“Two kinds of demon qi?” Zhao Xiongge muttered. He walked over and crouched beside Yin’er, once again using spiritual power to examine her carefully. After checking her, he exclaimed in surprise, “Could this be the legendary demon power?”

Niu Youdao was startled and came over. “What demon power?”

“I read about it in the records of the Demonic Sect. Legend says that once a demon cultivator’s strength reaches a certain realm, the demon qi within the body advances into demon power, greatly increasing the cultivator’s strength. Strange. There isn’t the slightest sign of spiritual power in her body. What is going on?” Zhao Xiongge looked up. “Who exactly is this female demon?”

Niu Youdao spread his hands and smiled bitterly. “I don’t know either. I picked her up along the road, and she latched onto me and refuses to let go. She gives me a headache too. Why don’t you just take her back to Demon Ridge? You can study her at your leisure.”

Zhao Xiongge had already realized that Niu Youdao was up to no good and had no intention of falling for it. He ignored him, called over the flying mount, leaped aboard, and disappeared with it into the boundless night.

“Senior…” Niu Youdao called after him, to no effect. When he turned around, he found that Tu Han had already flown away as well.

He was the only person left at the scene. Niu Youdao circled the unconscious Yin’er twice. At last, he slowly drew the treasured sword in his hand. Its edge gleamed coldly beneath the moonlight. He intended to seize the opportunity to kill her and eliminate the danger for good.

But at that very moment, Yin’er suddenly opened her eyes and looked at him...

Under the moonlight, the area around Butterfly Valley had been sealed off by large numbers of Myriad Beasts Sect disciples, who allowed no one to approach.

The atmosphere was extraordinary. Almost the entire upper echelon of Myriad Beasts Sect had turned out and gathered outside Butterfly Valley, each of them staring gravely at the entrance to the Illusory Realm, which resembled a curtain of water.

According to past experience, the entrance to Butterfly Dream Illusory Realm should have closed that afternoon. This time, however, something abnormal had occurred. The entrance had not closed. It had merely shrunk considerably.

Before long, the watery curtain rippled. Ten Myriad Beasts Sect disciples who had risked entering to investigate emerged again.

One stepped forward and reported, “Sect Leader, passage in and out is normal. Everything inside the Illusory Realm is normal as well. There is nothing unusual.”

Sect Leader Xi Haitang said heavily, “Can anyone tell me what exactly is going on?”

No one could give him an answer.

Someone ventured, “Could it have something to do with the Rakshasa Tide this time?”

Chao Jing immediately shot back, “What are you implying? This was hardly the first Rakshasa Tide. They happened before as well, so why did nothing like this happen then? Don’t make baseless claims.”

He was not about to casually shoulder responsibility for the matter. Turning back to Xi Haitang, he added, “Sect Leader, I’m afraid an abnormality like this will inevitably alarm the nine supreme experts and bring them here!”

Xi Haitang’s jaw tightened. “Leave people here to keep watch. Report immediately if there is any further abnormality.”

[End of Chapter 483]