Chapter 569 - Wanderer

Translated by: Hypersheep325

Edited by: Michyrr

Who had lived and who had died? Upon hearing the middle-aged scholar's words, the tourist-like man fell silent, gazing at the distant mountains to calm his mind. As he gazed at the sea of clouds, he gave off the feeling of one weathered by the trials of time. He indifferently spoke, "Sir and His Majesty are not like him, so logically, you should not have appeared here."

The middle-aged scholar did not directly answer his question, instead saying, "Seeing that you've appeared, We finally have confirmed that this is not a plot."

The man asked, "For what reason?"

The middle-aged scholar explained, "If this were a plot planned by you, today, We really might have had some trouble, at least more trouble than now."

The man replied, "Not necessarily. Since he has always been at Your Majesty's side, how could he not see through one of my plans?"

The scholar shook his head. "He did not agree with Our decision to come, so this time, We came on Our own."

The man was somewhat surprised, asking, "Your Majesty has always followed his advice. Why not this time?"

The middle-aged scholar turned to gaze at the mountains across from the cliff. After a moment of silence, he replied, "Our time is running out."

The man agreed, "Your Majesty's time truly is running out."

When the middle-aged scholar spoke of time, he was clearly speaking of time on a much grander scale. When this man spoke of time, on the other hand, he was pointing out that the Heavenstone array of Mount Han had already been activated. If the scholar did not quickly depart, he really might end up surrounded by the supreme experts of the human world.

"You plan to delay Us for some time?" The middle-aged scholar did not turn his head. His voice was still apathetic, still confident and tyrannical.

The man indicated that his elderly companion should stand behind him. Then, gazing at the scholar's back, he said, "In these past few years, I've paid no attention to the affairs of the world, and both you and little Tianhai are too lazy to send people to kill me. I very much enjoy this life and have no intentions of changing it."

The middle-aged scholar turned to him and said, "You and he are both people that this emperor would wish to get rid of as quickly as possible. For you to survive to this day is because you are smart enough. Of course, you are strong enough as well. If either We or Tianhai wished to kill you, the two of us would inevitably find it rather troublesome."

The man replied, "Yes, in a little while, Tianhai and Yin will come over and you will be in trouble."

The scholar apathetically replied, "They will not come over. At most, only trash like Zhu Luo will come."

The man suddenly glanced at Chen Changsheng and asked, "Why does Your Majesty want to kill this youth?"

The middle-aged scholar continued to stare at the man as he spoke, "When We act, must We explain it to you? You are certainly not a Chen Emperor."

The man chuckled, saying, "Back then, I got used to asking His Majesty for justification. Today, I got used to asking Your Majesty for reasons, please do not take offense."

In these words and in this entire conversation, the word 'Majesty' had been mentioned many times, but they weren't speaking of the same Majesty.

The middle-aged scholar jeered, "No wonder your Chen Emperor never liked you."

The man replied, "All these are stale and trivial matters of the past—what need is there to keep bringing them up? Your Majesty, your time is truly running out."

The middle-aged scholar calmly looked at him and asked, "You wish to preserve this youth's life?"

The man affirmed, "Correct."

With an apathetic expression, the scholar asked, "In exchange for what?"

"Of course…it's Your Majesty's time. Your time is your life," the man pointed out.

The scholar replied, "A thousand years ago, you went to all the trouble of leading cavalry over ten thousand li of snowy plains for the sole purpose of killing Us…today's opportunity is much better than the one from back then. We do not understand why you're willing to give it up, just for this unremarkable little fellow?"

"If he really is some unremarkable little fellow, what need is there for Your Majesty to make a special trip to kill him? Although I don't know the reason, I can at least be sure that he's very important to humanity."

The man continued, "Your Majesty's life is naturally even more important than his, but the problem is, I'm not that Sir on the mountain peak that calculates fate, I don't believe that using this life to exchange for Your Majesty's life is a correct choice. In reality, it's always been impossible to place a value on this thing called life."

The scholar replied, "Although these words are absurd, they're also reasonable."

How could the absurd be reasonable? The average person wouldn't be able to understand, like Chen Changsheng or that elder timidly hiding behind the man, but the two people in this conversation understood.

They were both outstanding figures that had lived for ages, so their way of doing things was naturally out of the norm. Unexpectedly, the scholar turned without the slightest hesitation and departed without any care whatsoever. His departing Xuelao City to Mount Han had been such an important, such a risky, action, and to have to return without any sort of benefit, how difficult to accept such a thing would be.

Because no matter how hard it was to accept, one still had to accept what had already happened.

The middle-aged scholar knew that the man had spoken correctly. Everything this man had said and done his entire life seemed to have been done correctly.

So he chose to leave.

……

……

Watching the scholar's figure disappear into the dark mists and hearing the rumbling crashes of thunder fading into the distance, only after a very long time did the tourist-like man confirm that the scholar was far away and would not return. He softly sighed, seeming very sorrowful.

"Can he break through the Heavenstone array of Mount Han?"

The old man that had been hiding behind him all this time finally dared to stand up. Still somewhat overcome by fear, he asked, "If he can't break it, might he come back?"

The man smiled, saying, "Heavenly Secrets has always regarded himself highly, it's inevitable that he's somewhat overestimated himself."

The old man understood his meaning: he was saying that as long as the scholar was not disturbed, he would need only a short time to break through the array and leave. He couldn't help but be somewhat confused, asking, "This being the case, if Sir were to act just then, that really was the best opportunity to kill him."

"A thousand years ago, no matter if you were a human or demi-human expert, what you wanted to do the most was to kill him, but…the situation now is different."

"What's different?"

"He lost a round to Big Brother and ceased to be invincible, and he's also already old."

"But…I still think it's such a pity."

"In addition, if we were to fight, what would happen to this little fellow?" The man pointed to Chen Changsheng as he spoke.

The old man also turned to Chen Changsheng and said with coldness and scorn, "It's all because of this little fellow that Sir's hands and feet were tied."

Before the middle-aged scholar, the old man had been particularly humble. To the man beside him, he was very reverential. Yet the words and expression he aimed at Chen Changsheng were all very rude.

After the Grand Examination, when it was faintly established that he was the successor to the Pope, no one in the world dared to treat Chen Changsheng with such rudeness. Even his opponents would also maintain the appropriate courtesy. It could only be said that in the past, this old man had seen far too many powerful figures, so he would not hold anything back for the sake of Chen Changsheng's identity.

Chen Changsheng did not respond because he was currently too stunned, utterly incapable of working up any sort of response. In reality, when this tourist began speaking with the scholar, Chen Changsheng found himself utterly speechless. To be able to make the middle-aged scholar retreat with a few words, just where in the present world could such a powerful figure be found?

He knew who the middle-aged scholar was, and after hearing the conversation, he could already guess at the true identity of this tourist-like man.

He was too astonished, not daring to believe his conclusion.

The man had previously said to the scholar that they shouldn't mention those old and trivial matters of the past anymore…no, those matters were grand events recorded in the annals of history! They were all by necessity grand figures recorded in the history book, and the records concerning them assuredly took up the most space and the most important position!

"Little friend, why did he want to kill you?"

At this moment, a gentle voice resounded amongst the cliffs, awakening Chen Changsheng from his shocked stupor.

He stared at the man that had walked up to him, his mouth agape, unable to speak for a long time.

The man was elegant and handsome, his two brows somewhat speckled with wind and frost. As he spoke, his lips seemed to exude an elusive scent of books and scrolls, giving off an indescribable sense of wisdom.

As Chen Changsheng stared at this face, he found it simply impossible to think of a response. He could only stare in astonishment, and even the hand gripping his dagger slightly trembled.

Anyone who suddenly saw a legend, thought dead by all, appear in front of them would probably feel the same. This wasn't even mentioning the fact that this legendary figure had always been his most admired and respected model.

His voice trembling, he said, "Sir is…"

The man smiled and shook his head, indicating that he didn't need to ask.

"It cannot be said, or else we will invite the wrath of the heavens," the old man on the side warned. His expression was very serious and he didn't seem to be making a joke.

Chen Changsheng did not understand, but he very obediently shut his mouth tight, afraid that if he really did randomly speak, he would divulge some heavenly secret and thus bring the man some sort of trouble. Then, he rolled up the front of his gown and prostrated himself before the man, preparing to kowtow.

The man did not allow him to kneel down. He grabbed both his arms, smiling in silence.

His gaze seemed to pick out something on Chen Changsheng's body and his brows slowly rose up as if he had seen something very interesting.

Ultimately, he shook his head, lightly sighed, turned, and began walking away from the cliff.

The old man followed behind.

Chen Changsheng hurried over, but to his surprise, the man and the elder had walked straight into the abyss beyond the cliff.

At this time, the darkness that had enveloped Mount Han was gradually fading, almost like Mount Han was welcoming a second dawn.

A white cloud had come from some place to rise up from the stream below.

The man and the elder had walked away from the cliff and fallen upon this cloud.

The white cloud leisurely drifted off into the distance.

This was what was meant to wander amongst the clouds.

(TN: 云游 usually translates to wander/roam, but it literally translates to 'traveling the clouds'.)

……

……

The mountain wind was slightly chilly as the day emerged once more. Presumably, the middle-aged scholar had already broken through the Heavenstone array and returned north.

Chen Changsheng did not feel like rejoicing over his new lease on life, nor even think about such a thing. He only stood on the cliff, blankly staring in the direction that the white cloud had disappeared.

Previously, after waking from his stupor, he had so many things he wanted to say to the tourist-like man, but it was a pity that there was no time. He had wanted to say, "I went to Lingyan Pavilion, I saw Sir's portrait there and also read Sir's notebook and took away the black stone Sir left behind…"

Thinking this, he caressed the string of stone pearls and gazed at the black stone, not speaking for a long time. Afterwards, he clasped his hands and made a deep bow in the direction the white cloud had vanished. He then turned and began walking towards the cliff, in the opposite direction of the sea of clouds, yet before he could walk two steps, he collapsed on the ground.

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Chapter 570 - The Meeting of Two Sovereigns

Translated by: Hypersheep325

Edited by: Michyrr

The white cloud dispersed over a verdant valley.

The valley was extremely peaceful and serene, with fantastically shaped trees and vines growing in abundance. The forests by the cliffs would occasionally resound with the low howls of some powerful monster. But those monsters did not dare approach this place, because this place contained a lofty, majestic, and ancient Buddhist temple, and also because this ancient temple served as residence to two people.

The old man asked in confusion, "We've secluded ourselves for several centuries and were able to go out after such difficulty, and we return just like that?"

The other man smiled and said, "It wasn't completely without gain. At least we got a glance at that youth."

The elder replied, "Could it be that Sir especially went out to see that youth?"

The man replied, "That youth is Shang's disciple and also cared for by Yin. Little Tianhai even requested for Heavenly Secrets to come over especially to examine him. It's hard for me to not be curious."

The old man replied, "Sir is certainly not the type of person who will step back into the secular world out of curiosity."

The man said, "That youth obtained my notebook and Heavenly Tome Monolith, and brought down a night of starlight in the Mausoleum of Books. Many people say that he's very similar to me from the past, which is naturally different from my view."

The old man asked, "Then what did Sir see?"

The man's expression grew solemn. "That youth…will soon die."

The old man was flabbergasted by this statement. "Then what should be done?"

The man walked into the main hall of the ancient temple and gazed at the dilapidated Great Buddha. "Everyone wishes to defy the heavens and change fate, but how could they know that all causes and effects lie within the causes and effects themselves. The more one wants to change fate, the more impossible it is to pull away from the river of fate. I cannot see how his fate will ultimately turn out. In the end, one must still look at him."

"Then what about Qiushan Jun and Xu Yourong? When does Sir plan to go see them?"

"We'll talk about that later." The man glanced out of the temple at the sky and warned, "It's going to rain. Quickly finish off today's painting."

This ancient temple's exterior was extremely run-down, seemingly abandoned for countless years, and the same could be said for the Buddhist images in the various halls of the temple. But the succession of the Buddhist school on the continent had long since been severed, and it was utterly unheard of amongst the common people. Thus, this sort of scene was actually quite commonplace. In reality, that this ancient Buddhist temple could continue to exist until now was the truly puzzling matter here.

However, the paintings on the stone walls of the temple were extremely complete and even seemed very new. It was obvious that they had only been painted in these past few years.

The paintings on the wall were all extremely beautiful. It could even be said that it would be simply impossible to find such an outstanding painter in the world today.

If Chen Changsheng were to see these wall paintings, he would assuredly think of those portraits in the Lingyan Pavilion.

The old man stood on a wooden frame, holding a painting brush and preparing to get to work. In the end, however, he still could not hold himself back. "Back there, you really should have tried."

The other man sat on a broken bell in the front of the hall, his hand carrying a pot of spring water that he was slowly drinking from. Upon hearing this, he smiled and said, "I can't even beat him."”

The old man put down his paintbrush and gazed out of the hall, saying, "Last year, Su Li was outside Xuelao City…"

The other man did not reply, only quietly looked into the distance.

The old man sighed internally and no longer continued to ask.

At the time, the Demon Lord had been within Xuelao City, Black Robe without. How would he have told him to attack? How could he have possibly attacked?

……

……

On the shore of the Red River, on the walls of White Emperor City, the cloud slowly descended and then vanished without a trace, but it was not known whether this was lucky or inauspicious.

On the Dew Platform, the Tianhai Divine Empress no longer looked northward. Turning, she descended down the platform.

In the depths of the Li Palace, the Pope gazed at the Green Leaf in contemplation. In terms of both posture and expression, nothing had changed.

The darkness enveloping Mount Han slowly tore apart and drifted far away, the heavens and earth returned to day once more. By the lake at the summit, the Elder of Heavenly Secrets lightly wiped away the blood at his lips. As he gazed into the depths of the snowy plains far north beyond the mountains, his ancient eyes seemed a tinge muddy, somewhat unable to see clearly the way ahead.

On the southern foothills of Mount Han, a scribe appeared, with a red flower tied to his little finger. Stained by the dust of several thousand li, it was no longer as gaudy. A man wearing a bamboo hat appeared in the small village beyond Mount Han's gateway, his cheeks corroded by the sea breeze and extremely solemn. They had come late—the middle-aged scholar had already left Mount Han—but they did not just leave. Instead, along with those two Prefects of the Orthodoxy wielding the precious treasures of the Orthodoxy, they vigilantly stood watch around Mount Han, guarding against possible changes.

On the long battlefront in the north of the continent, the Great Zhou Northern Army and the cultivating experts dispatched from the southern sects and families to assist the northerners received secret orders from their respective commanders to move out, and began to nervously prepare for battle. The demi-human army began to move along the Red River, proceeding towards the snowy plains in the northwest. On the way, they slaughtered a small tribe of demons.

Whether it was the Divine Generals of the Great Zhou Imperial Court that had sent out the order to mobilize or the masters of the various sects and families of the south, none of them knew the cause of all this. The sounds of discussion could be heard everywhere in those military headquarters and caves. The mood was abnormally tense, causing extreme unease.

As for those people in the small village outside Mount Han and the denizens of the capital, they were completely unaware of all these events. As normal, they ate, labored, and lived, not even able to imagine that in these seemingly normal summer days, the war between the demons and the alliance of humans and demi-humans was about to break out once more after one thousand years.

All of this was just because…the Demon Lord had left Xuelao City.

He had gone to Mount Han, and then left Mount Han.

……

……

The people who knew that the Demon Lord had stepped back into the Central Plains were extremely few in number.

Even fewer people knew that after the Demon Lord left Mount Han, on his way back to Xuelao City, he encountered a person on the snowy plains.

Only after many years did the common people come to know of this meeting, but this was actually the most important meeting in all of this grand event.

No appointment had been made, but this was no chance encounter.

This person had waited in the snowy plains for the Demon Lord for a very long time.

Wind and snow filled the sky and this person was white all over. From his hair to his clothes, from his brows to his lips, all of it was white.

He was not stained white from the snow. This white was even whiter than snow, so white that it was uncomfortable, white to the extreme.

A person that was able to calculate the Demon Lord's return route and wait for him midway, that dared to wait in this place for him—even looking over the past thousand years, there were not many people capable of this feat.

To be more precise, this was not a human, but a great demi-human with world-shaking cultivation.

The White Emperor of the west.

……

……

A thousand years ago, the demons went south and the continent raged in chaos. Experts emerged in great numbers and left behind countless battles that would go down in history. Amongst them, the most famous were naturally the battle in Luoyang between Zhou Dufu and Emperor Taizong as well as the mortal battle between him and the Demon Lord. But there was one more secret battle which, in terms of fighting strength and the bitterness of battle, was absolutely not any less than these other two battles. This was the battle of supreme experts under the starry sky in the Garden of Zhou between Chen Xuanba and Zhou Dufu.

With Chen Xuanba's death in battle, Zhou Dufu's disappearance, and Emperor Taizong's return to the sea of stars, of the four supreme experts of the past, only the Demon Lord remained. In the following one thousand years, no such heaven-shaking battles occurred, nor even a battle that approached that level.

Until today, this meeting in these plains in which wind and snow intermingled.

Since they had met, they would naturally fight.

……

……

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Chapter 571 - A Lake Many Years in the Future

Translated by: Hypersheep325

Edited by: Michyrr

Whether discussing power or status, this battle between the Demon Lord and the White Emperor was well-qualified to be placed on par with the three battles from one thousand years ago.

Rather regretfully, this battle did not have any spectators.

Back then, Zhou Dufu's battle with Chen Xuanba also had no spectators, but afterwards, Zhou Dufu had narrated the details of the battle many times. In an extraordinarily rare sight, Zhou Dufu did not attempt to conceal his admiration for Chen Xuanba and even clearly stated that he wanted to proclaim to the world just how amazing Chen Xuanba was.

As for this battle, afterwards, neither the Demon Lord nor the White Emperor spoke of it, so no one knew of the particulars.

No one even knew the result of this battle.

The entire world only knew that after that day, a massive crater appeared in the snowy plains to the north of Mount Han. The crater in the snowy plain was around thirty zhang deep and ten-odd li in circumference. If one stood in the crater and looked around, one would still feel like they were on a plain.

This was the trace left behind by this battle that was the most difficult to obliterate, and also the most direct descriptor of the intensity this battle had reached.

The extent of this battle's influence was even greater. Seventy li away in the north plains was a forest of evergreen trees. Afterwards, hunters of the demon race that were familiar with the area were never able to find the slightest trace of this forest again. Moreover, a camp of the demon army's wolf cavalry concealed in this forest also strangely disappeared.

The world seventy li away had been destroyed, so the snowy plains at the center of the battle did not even need to be discussed.

No living beings could be found at the bottom of the vast crater, only the once incomparably firm stones now crushed into a fine powder. No corpses could be found either—those snow foxes, monsters, and even smaller animals had already vanished without a trace. Only by digging deep into the gravel could perhaps a few bloodstains be found.

The most frightening of all was the unimaginably scalding smoke left over from the battle, which rose from the crater like some star had once fallen there.

Such a scalding crater naturally could not accumulate any snow. When the snowflakes fell, the snow would melt into water, gradually forming thin brooklets, then streams, and finally lakes. With the incessant wind and snow, the surface of the water continuously rose even after many years. Thus, in the snowy plains to the north of Mount Han, a blue lake appeared that would never freeze for years upon years.

Just like the Heaven Lake at the peak of Mount Han.

Of course, this was a matter many years in the future. As for the present, almost nobody knew that a crater had suddenly appeared to the north of Mount Han and that it would become a lake in the following years. Even fewer people knew that this was because a battle had taken place there. Naturally, nobody knew about this battle's final result.

This battle only had three spectators.

After the conclusion of this battle, two of these spectators walked out of the wind and snow.

Walking in the front was a middle-aged Daoist, his appearance very ordinary. Walking behind was a youth, his appearance very unusual. He was lame, a crutch under his armpit. His black hair hanging over his eyes blocked off half his face. It was precisely those two that had vanished from Xining Village and were henceforth never found, Daoist Ji and…Yu Ren.

The White Emperor gazed at Daoist Ji and slowly nodded his head.

Daoist Ji slightly bent his body forward in return.

The White Emperor glanced at Yu Ren, then turned and vanished into the snowstorm.

Daoist Ji quietly gazed north, then he took Yu Ren and disappeared into the snowstorm in the opposite direction.

From beginning to end, nobody spoke.

Several hundred li to the north, in the snowy plains, Black Robe put away his somewhat broken-down metal plate and gazed south.

The howling wind lifted the lower corner of his hood, revealing the lower half of his face.

His face did not have the slightest emotion. Paired with the faint greenish hue on his skin, it seemed particularly strange and frightening. Yet by just looking at a small part of his face, even if it was just the mouth and lower jaw, one would still feel that this person was very beautiful. To make a strange face engender feelings of beauty, just how beautiful was the face itself?

Not long after Daoist Ji and Yu Ren disappeared into the snow, he pulled down his hood and began walking north into the snowstorm.

He had not gotten close to the snowy plains around Xuelao City when he was blocked by an enormous shadow.

It was a gigantic Mountain-toppling Fiend.

This Mountain-toppling Fiend of ruthless nature and monstrous strength was at this time extremely docile, because it was a mount.

A cold and ruthless voice came from the horn of the Mountain-toppling Fiend.

"This commander seems to have arrived a little late."

The Demon Commander sat on the horn, leaning against the lower jaw of the beast while coldly staring at Black Robe below.

His armor was covered in golden lines and green rust, looking extremely dazzling.

His voice was abnormally raw and hoarse, harsh as metal grinding on metal.

Black Robe paid no attention to this second most powerful expert of the demons. His head lowered in silence, he prepared to walk by.

The Demon Commander's voice grew more furious as he sharply yelled, "As the Military Advisor, you failed to dissuade His Majesty. What punishment do you think you deserve!"

Black Robe's voice was indifferent and uninterested. "His Majesty safely returned, so what need is there for you and I to stir trouble over nothing?"

The Demon Commander was even more infuriated, yelling out in rebuke, "His Majesty is heavily wounded and you actually dare say that I am getting upset over nothing?"

Hearing this, Black Robe finally stopped. Raising his head upwards at the massive Mountain-toppling Fiend, he said frigidly, "You actually dare attempt to probe out the condition of His Majesty's injuries from me? If His Majesty were to find out, you would die a nasty death."

The Demon Commander coldly snorted, then said, "You believe that His Majesty will still trust in you as he did in the past?"

Black Robe calmly replied, "His Majesty has already trusted me for several hundred years, and he will continue to trust me for many more."

The Demon Commander sharply said, "If His Majesty really did suffer severe injuries, just who do you think can save your life? Don't forget, in these past years, how many ministers have you executed, how many grand elders have you offended? Moreover, even if you've achieved much for my Divine race, in the end, you are still a human!"

Black Robe ignored him and continued into the snowstorm.

No one knew of this conversation in the snow, and even if they did, they would find it very ordinary.

To the officers and soldiers of the Demon race, the Demon Commander and Military Advisor not agreeing was a very commonplace affair.

Yet if one carefully thought it over, they would be able to realize that this conversation contained many meanings that were not commonplace at all.

……

……

After a thousand years, the Demon Lord once more appeared in the human world. The continent was thrown into upheaval and became extremely tense. Mount Han, as the source of all this, was even more so.

The Heavenstone array had been forcefully broken by the Demon Lord, so the several thousand Heavenstones returned to their places. Those gaps in the fields, cliffs, and lake waters were once more filled. The injured were brought to the mountain summit for treatment, the dead were sent back to their hometowns. Those collapsed mountain paths and cliff walls also began to be repaired, but the mood could not be brought back to its former tranquility. The stewards of the Pavilion of Heavenly Secrets and the cultivators attending the Boiling Stone Summit all had very nervous expressions.

Even now, not many people knew just what happened yesterday, why the supreme experts of the human world had hurried over in succession to Mount Han. The truth still remained obscured by dense fog, but people could sense that something major had certainly occurred. This was because of the heavy guard around Mount Han and also because of the oppressive atmosphere coming from the house by the lake.

Linghai Zhiwang and Mao Qiuyu, who had at first been denied entry to Mount Han, had appeared at the summit and were standing outside this house with ugly complexions.

There were ten-odd houses along the lake shore, intended for the cultivators attending the Boiling Stone Summit to stay in. This house had the best position, facing the lake and against the mountain. It was exceptionally quiet and the scenery from the house was also the best. However, it was very obvious that this was not enough for Mao Qiuyu and Linghai Zhiwang's moods to improve in the slightest.

Because at this moment, Chen Changsheng was still unconscious in this house.

……

……

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Chapter 572 - How Did You Escape?

Translated by: Hypersheep325

Edited by: Michyrr

After opening his eyes with some difficulty and seeing Tang Thirty-Six's concerned face, Chen Changsheng felt that there was nothing out of the ordinary. However, after seeing that Zhexiu's perpetually indifferent face was actually showing some concern, he couldn't but be a little shocked and then get the impulse to laugh.

His injuries had not been light—his sea of consciousness had been shaken, resulting in his unconscious spell.

It wasn't because of the internal injuries he had received when he had used the Thousand Li Button and collided against the Heavenstone array enveloping Mount Han, but all because of the Demon Lord's distant finger.

At the time, the Demon Lord, standing by the stream and separated from him by a vast distance, had pointed his finger.

He had used the Yellow Paper Umbrella to block this Qi, but he had not been able to block the monstrous might contained within.

"You actually woke up so quickly?"

Tang Thirty-Six was very surprised to see him awake so soon and leaned forward to help him up.

Zhexiu commented, "He really did wake up quickly."

Sitting against the head of the bed, Chen Changsheng looked at them and said, "Why can't I see any excitement on your faces?"

Zhexiu ignored this question while Tang Thirty-Six replied, "The Elder of Heavenly Secrets personally came to see you and confirmed that there was nothing wrong, so there was nothing for us to be worried about."

Chen Changsheng thought of those two worried faces he saw the moment he woke up and knew that they just didn't want to admit it. He would not needle at them, instead saying, "The Elder of Heavenly Secrets confirms that there's nothing wrong with me, so that means that there really is nothing wrong with me? You should invite Principal Mao to come and see."

At present, Mao Qiuyu was Archbishop of the Hall of Illustrious Persons, but they were used to addressing him as principal.

Tang Thirty-Six replied, "The Elder of Heavenly Secrets calculates the stars above and rivers below and he has never once been wrong. If he's says there's nothing, there's naturally nothing wrong."

Chen Changsheng fell silent, then said, "Then did he calculate that we would encounter these things?"

With these words, the room became abnormally silent. Only the faint sound of voices in the distance could be heard.

This peace and silence were because they all felt that all the things that happened after entering Mount Han reeked with the stench of plotting and conspiracy, but the primary reason was that they had all recalled the middle-aged scholar.

The picture of the middle-aged scholar holding his hands behind him as he gazed at the persimmons had left far too deep of an impression on them.

They knew that it would be very difficult to forget that scene for the rest of their lives.

After quite some time had passed, Tang Thirty-Six whispered to Chen Changsheng, "You're sure…it was that person?"

Without speaking, Chen Changsheng slowly nodded his head.

Tang Thirty-Six lowered his head and rubbed his forehead, powerless to speak.

He was the sole son of the Wenshui Tangs, not even fearing the Tianhai clan much. It really could be said that he feared nothing in the heavens and earth, the many stories that had taken place in front of the Orthodox Academy proof of this. Yet when he thought of the middle-aged scholar's identity, even he felt fear in his heart.

"When I was very small, I had a dream."

A voice broke the downcast mood in the room.

Chen Changsheng and Tang Thirty-Six looked over.

Zhexiu looked at the other two and expressionlessly continued, "It was to kill him."

Chen Changsheng was shocked speechless. To aspire to kill the Demon Lord from such a young age, this was truly too…

"Formidable," Tang Thirty-Six said to Zhexiu with heartfelt admiration. "You're far too formidable."

"But…that's just a dream."

Zhexiu thought of the scene he saw at the mountain path, his complexion somewhat pale. "I never imagined that I would see him with my own eyes."

Tang Thirty-Six became rather incensed at these words. Waving his hands to indicate his disdain, he turned to Chen Changsheng and asked, "How did you manage to survive?"

This was a matter all of Mount Han, even all of the world, wished to know, and also the point in this entire event that was most crucial and most difficult to understand. Even when delayed by the Heavenstone array of the Elder of Heavenly Secrets, the Demon Lord still wanted to kill Chen Changsheng, so just how had he managed to survive?

Relying on strength, talent, magical artifacts, or will?

No, this was the Demon Lord.

No matter how outstanding Chen Changsheng was in these aspects, it was impossible for him to escape by relying on them.

Upon hearing Tang Thirty-Six's question, Zhexiu did not show much expression, only moved two steps closer to the bed. It was very obvious that he was also very interested in this answer.

Chen Changsheng did not immediately answer the question, instead using his eyes to give a sign to Tang Thirty-Six.

Tang Thirty-Six understood. He walked to the door and looked around, then took out a magical artifact from his bosom. A faint Qi sprung forth that cut off any prying eyes.

"I…met a person." Chen Changsheng hesitated, then continued, "That person might have been Lord Wang."

Tang Thirty-Six and Zhexiu looked in each other in the eyes, shock evident on their faces.

Especially for Zhexiu, this resolute and persistent wolf youth, besides the Demon Lord's name, what other name could cause him to lose control over his emotions?

Lord Wang…this world had many people surnamed Wang, and also many people that served as officials, and there were also many people that were called Lord Wang. In the past one thousand years, only one did not require any sort of prefix or explanation. Just by calling him Lord Wang, everyone in the world would know who it meant.

That person was called Wang Zhice.

The room became incomparably quiet, a silence that lasted even longer than the last.

After this interminable time had passed, Tang Thirty-Six and Zhexiu finally awoke from their shock.

Tang Thirty-Six sighed, "Lord Wang…really did not die."

Chen Changsheng was somewhat surprised, so he asked Tang Thirty-Six, "You guys aren't shocked?"

Tang Thirty-Six angrily replied, "We were just like quails a moment ago, how else do you want us to be shocked?"

"But…you said 'really' just now…could it be that many people already guessed that Lord Wang wasn't dead?"

"Of course, these sorts of rumors have been circulating all the time, saying that Lord Wang was still alive, just hiding away as a recluse from the world."

"But in the Daoist Canon and the histories, it's written very clearly that Lord Wang's soul has already returned to the sea of stars."

”If you can believe all the words in the histories, then women can become emperors."

"The Tianhai Empress…"

"It's a metaphor…in brief, this matter has always been one of the two great riddles and people have always been speculating about it."

"Two great riddles?" Chen Changsheng asked in confusion.

Tang Thirty-Six explained, "The final ends of Zhou Dufu and Lord Wang."

Chen Changsheng thought of that obsidian coffin in the Mausoleum of Zhou that was as barren as a plain and seemed to understand. "Because no one has discovered their skeletons?"

Tang Thirty-Six replied, "To be more precise, no one even knows if they've died or not…back then, no matter if it was Emperor Taizong or those legends of the Lingyan Pavilion, they all ultimately returned to the sea of stars, all of them witnessed by many people. Only those two are exceptions."

Chen Changsheng thought it over and then said with extreme confidence, "Then, at least one of those riddles has been solved."

Tang Thirty-Six and Zhexiu once more looked at each other and asked uncertainly, "You're sure?"

It must be known that this was no ordinary matter. Once news that Wang Zhice was still alive got out, it would assuredly shake the entire continent.

Chen Changsheng nodded but then suddenly remembered something and his expression subtly changed.

__________________

Chapter 573 - The True Crux of the Matter

Translated by: Hypersheep325

Edited by: Michyrr

"What's wrong?" Tang Thirty-Six asked.

Before, when he was in front of the cliff, Chen Changsheng had wanted to verify whether or not this tourist-like man was actually the legendary Wang Zhice. The man had only silently smiled and shaken his head, but the old man that followed him had very seriously warned him that this was a heavenly secret that could not be broached without risking the wrath of the heavens…

"This matter…it seems that I shouldn't have spoken about it."

Chen Changsheng turned to Tang Thirty-Six and Zhexiu, asking them anxiously, "You guys can't talk about this to anyone else."

Tang Thirty-Six and Zhexiu looked in each other’s eyes for the third time today.

The room once more descended into silence.

After some time had passed, Tang Thirty-Six and Zhexiu nodded.

Upon seeing this, Chen Changsheng relaxed. He was keenly aware that if these two friends of his promised something, they would definitely carry it out.

"Your fate…is really good."

As Tang Thirty-Six spoke, his tone seemed to be very regretful, even tinged with a hint of almost indiscernible envy. Money was all-powerful and there were very few things in this world that he could not do, so he very rarely envied others. However, Chen Changsheng's luck and good fortune were sufficient to make him envious.

The legendary Wang Zhice was actually still alive and had reappeared in the world with only Chen Changsheng to witness it. Moreover, it just so happened to be when the Demon Lord was attempting to kill him. At that moment, other than a person like Wang Zhice whose appearance was utterly impossible, who could have saved him?

Ever since he had arrived in the capital from Xining, Chen Changsheng had heard far too many times that his fate was good. Of course, he knew that his fate wasn't good, but after hearing this evaluation so many times, he couldn't help but occasionally think that perhaps all these lucky encounters of his were the starry sky's way of compensating him for his fate.

Tang Tang Thirty-Six, rather puzzled, asked, "Since Lord Wang is still alive, why has he never appeared in all these years?"

Zhexiu expressionlessly replied, "Why does he need to appear?"

Tang Thirty-Six retorted, "Whether it's opposing the demons or strengthening my Great Zhou…"

He trailed off as he understood the meaning of Zhexiu's words. Nobody knew what happened before Wang Zhice's disappearance, but the entire continent knew that Emperor Taizong had truthfully never much liked him. In addition, if he really did reappear, how would the Great Zhou Imperial Court treat him?

As for opposing the demons…Wang Zhice had already done too much, and no one in the entire human world was qualified to demand that he do any more.

"How many days was I unconscious?" Only at this point did Chen Changsheng remember to ask this question.

Tang Thirty-Six was still lost in the shock from the fact that Wang Zhice was still alive and did not respond to his question.

Zhexiu revealed five fingers, showing his entire palm.

It turned out that he had been unconscious for five days. In these five days, who knew what had occurred on Mount Han? Chen Changsheng asked, "Is there anything new?"

Zhexiu thought this question over and discovered that he would need to say far too many things. As a result, he shook his head and slapped his palm on Tang Thirty-Six's back, rousing him from his daze.

Tang Thirty-Six talked about the tense situation around the continent and also about the nervous mood of Mount Han.

"Then…will the Boiling Stone Summit still be convened?"

"Based on Mao Qiuyu and Linghai Zhiwang's position, if you were to remain in a coma, they would take you back to the capital and the summit would naturally conclude, but now, you're awake."

"Everyone attending the Boiling Stone Summit has arrived? They didn't encounter any dangers?"

Tang Thirty-Six gave him a very profound glance, then said, "Everyone that should have come has arrived, no problems."

Upon hearing the news that Chen Changsheng was awake, Mao Qiuyu and Linghai Zhiwang entered the house to inquire. Upon confirming that his condition was fine, they withdrew the proposal of returning to the capital. Important figures of the Pavilion of Heavenly Secrets also came to visit, their attitudes very respectful, even humble. They even said that in a few days, the Elder of Heavenly Secrets would come personally to do this and that…

Chen Changsheng was rather confused. Even if he was the successor of the Pope, there was no need for the Pavilion of Heavenly Secrets to fuss over him so. This wasn't even mentioning the fact that the Elder of Heavenly Secrets was the leader of the Storms of the Eight Directions, such a high position. And wasn’t it possible that when the Demon Lord broke through the array a few days ago, the Elder of Heavenly Secrets suffered considerable injuries?

As he thought of these problems and thought even more about those other problems, time passed. It was now late in the night. Everyone within and without the small house was asleep while the Orthodoxy and experts of the Pavilion of Heavenly Secrets vigilantly patrolled nearby. Everything was quiet and one could hear the sound of the lake water slapping against the rocks.

Upon waking, Chen Changsheng had asked Tang Thirty-Six whether all the people attending the Boiling Stone Summit had arrived and whether or not they had encountered any dangers. When Tang Thirty-Six had replied that everyone that should have come had arrived, his words seemed to contain a deeper meaning. This was because he clearly understood just who Chen Changsheng really wanted to ask about.

When everyone on the peak was asleep, the person that should have come finally arrived.

The window was pushed open. The warm breeze off the lake drifted, bringing with it a lithe and graceful figure.

This figure drifted along with the breeze until it drifted all the way to his bed, sat down, and softly asked, "How are you?"

Chen Changsheng looked at her eyes like two pools of limpid autumn water, saw the deeply concerned expression in her eyes, and suddenly realized that being injured was not a difficult thing to endure.

"I'm okay, really."

The visitor was naturally Xu Yourong.

Even hearing Chen Changsheng say he was okay did not allow her to relax. She closed her eyes, raised her right hand, and placed it in the air precisely over the point between Chen Changsheng's eyebrows.

A sacred and pure light descended and flowed into Chen Changsheng's body.

The number of people that could use the Sacred Light technique at this level was extremely small. Other than the Pope and the three cardinals of the Thirteen Divisions of Radiant Green, she was probably the strongest.

Chen Changsheng only felt like he was caressed by the spring wind that then entered his body. His true essence flowed happily through his meridians like the water in a stream on a spring day and his injuries gradually recovered.

"Thank you."

"Just who was that person?"

The previous Holy Maiden had gone off together with Su Li, and with South Stream Temple under the leadership of the young Xu Yourong, some news really could not be known too accurately.

"It should be the Demon Lord," Chen Changsheng replied.

The room was very quiet. After a long time, Xu Yourong reached out her hand and patted the back of Chen Changsheng's hand, saying, "As long as you're fine, it's okay."

It was very obvious that she had never consoled someone before, so whether it was her patting hand or the tone of her voice, it was all rather awkward and clumsy.

She did not ask Chen Changsheng how he had survived, but Chen Changsheng was not prepared to hide it from her, even though he had said during the day to Tang Thirty-Six and Zhexiu that this matter should not be mentioned to others.

"I might have met Lord Wang Zhice."

After hearing this, Xu Yourong was truly shocked. From the countless gory and frightening scenes the middle-aged scholar had created by the stream, the incomparably powerful strength he had displayed, and the response of the human world's experts towards him, she had long ago basically concluded that the scholar was the Demon Lord, she just needed to hear it from Chen Changsheng's mouth to finally confirm it. However, she had not imagined that she would actually hear the heaven-shaking news that Wang Zhice was still alive from Chen Changsheng.

To her, this news was even more shocking than the reappearance of the Demon Lord.

Wang Zhice had a very special place in the history of the human world. Back when the humans and demi-humans joined hands to oppose the demon cavalry, Emperor Taizong had been commander-in-chief, the leader, while Wang Zhice had been the vice-commander. He had personally led the allied armies across the tens of thousands of li of snowy plains, pressing up all the way to Xuelao City. Purely on merit alone, he was not one bit below Emperor Taizong, and could even be his better. If not for the coup of the Hundred Herb Garden and other complex reasons, if not for the fact that Emperor Taizong harbored a deep dislike and fear towards him, he would have absolutely been worthy of occupying the first position in the Lingyan Pavilion.

Although this news was very shocking, Xu Yourong awoke very quickly from her stupor. She asked, "Why did the Demon Lord come to kill you?"

To Tang Thirty-Six and Zhexiu, how Chen Changsheng had survived his encounter with the Demon Lord was the most important matter and they also believed that was the question that everyone was the most worried about. However, Xu Yourong was much more cool-headed, much soberer, so she directly asked about the true crux of the matter.

……

……

________________________

Chapter 574 - This Way Is No Good

Translated by: Hypersheep325

Edited by: Michyrr

After losing to Zhou Dufu, the Demon Lord was severely injured and tended to his wounds in Xuelao City for one thousand years. What had he wanted to do with his sudden appearance in Mount Han? What task would cause such an important figure like the Demon Lord to take such an enormous risk? What was on Chen Changsheng's body? Or what did his existence signify?

This was something that the Elder of Heavenly Secrets could not calculate no matter how he tried. Xu Yourong's Fated Star Plate also could not calculate this, but she could just ask.

She dared to ask and Chen Changsheng dared to give the answer, even though this was his greatest secret. To her, he had no secrets, let alone the fact that he had already confessed this secret to her in the Mausoleum of Zhou. To be more precise, a part of this secret of his was already in her body.

Chen Changsheng pointed at his own body. He didn't speak, only mouthing a single word: "Blood."

Xu Yourong understood. Coupled with the records preserved in South Stream Temple on the injuries inflicted on the Demon Lord back then, she completely understood the origin of all this.

"Nanke?" she similarly mouthed.

Chen Changsheng nodded.

Xu Yourong looked at him, her eyes filled with concern.

The Demon Lord knew Chen Changsheng's secret, which also meant that he could attack Chen Changsheng at any time. He was the continent's most frightening expert, and to be coldly watched by this sort of expert at every moment, how dark was such a shadow? To live under this sort of shadow, what sort of pressure would one have to bear?

Xu Yourong asked herself, but even though her Dao heart was brightly lit, she found it impossible to imagine how she would respond to this sort of problem. She was very concerned with Chen Changsheng. Even if he never emerged from the capital again and remained under the protection of the Orthodoxy, his mind being under such restrictions would have adverse effects on his cultivation.

On the other hand, Chen Changsheng was not concerned over these problems at all. He had already lived under a similar shadow for quite a few years. What he was even more concerned over was that the secret of his body might be known by even more people. Those words of his senior brother Yu Ren on that night had remained with him always: no one can resist this sort of temptation.

Xu Yourong assured him, "That won't happen."

Chen Changsheng thought it over and agreed with her view. The Demon Lord would probably keep this secret hidden.

It was just like a treasure submerged in the bottom of a lake. A person that knew of such information would definitely not talk about it wherever they went, but instead slowly and silently refloat it for themselves.

"Did it occur to you that the Demon Lord appearing in Mount Han might have been a plot?"

Xu Yourong seemed to have thought of something as she stared into his eyes and very seriously asked this.

Chen Changsheng, Tang Thirty-Six and Zhexiu had speculated in this direction, but they had failed to find any reasons for it, so he shook his head.

Xu Yourong stared into his eyes and asked, "Where is Principal Shang? Just what does he want to do? And what does His Holiness want to do?"

Chen Changsheng didn't want to continue this line of questioning, so he fell silent.

Xu Yourong also fell silent.

After an unknown amount of time had passed, she suddenly said, "Let's tell this matter to the Empress."

Chen Changsheng looked into her eyes, still silent.

Xu Yourong calmly stared back with no intention of yielding. "If this is a plan of His Holiness and Principal Shang, then only the Empress can break it."

Without hesitation, Chen Changsheng replied, "I trust His Holiness."

Xu Yourong replied, "Then Principal Shang?"

Chen Changsheng did not reply. He got up and went to the table to pour himself a cup of tea.

Xu Yourong gazed at his back, a hint of pity flashing through her eyes. "Everyone believes that you are the successor of the Orthodoxy, naturally meant to stand opposed to the Empress, but did you ever think that if you were to change your point of view, the scenery might be completely different?"

Chen Changsheng knew that she was not persuading him on the behalf of the Divine Empress, she was just worried about him, but he could not say anything.

Just as was said in that conversation in the Orthodox Academy between him and Tang Thirty-Six, every person had their own responsibility.

He was an infant drifting on a river that his master had picked up and raised into an adult, educated into a respectable person. After arriving at the capital, he was watched over and nurtured by Archbishop Mei Lisha and received the high regard of the Pope. He had obtained far too many things from the Orthodoxy, so he had to bear the corresponding responsibility. Moreover…

"I don't trust the Empress," he calmly declared with his back turned to Xu Yourong and a teacup in his hands.

"Why?" Xu Yourong stood up and continued to ask, "Because the Empress is a woman, not a man?"

Chen Changsheng gazed at the cup in his hands as he replied, "No, because she is not a good person."

The matter concerned the throne of the Great Zhou and the inheritance of the Orthodoxy, they discussed powerful figures that had persisted in the world for many years, yet they spoke of 'man' and 'woman', 'good' and 'bad'. If other people were to hear this conversation, they would certainly deride the young man and woman of this conversation as too childish, naive, laughable.

But they spoke with great solemnity.

Xu Yourong knew that Chen Changsheng was just this sort of person.

She herself was this sort of person.

The room became quiet. For a long period, neither person spoke.

This was the first time that the two of them had formally discussed this sort of question. They had never spoken of it before because of their so-called 'factional dispute'.

"To me, the Empress…is just like a mother."

Xu Yourong's voice rose up once more, rather faint, but dense with emotion.

With regards to the relationship between the Tianhai Divine Empress and Xu Yourong, many people, Chen Changsheng included, could not understand just where this love and trust had arisen from. It was only when the Burning Heaven Sword concealed in Su Li's letter soared into the sky and clashed with the Wooden Sword Little Phoenix in the night above the capital that everyone knew the true reason: as it turned out, the Divine Empress also possessed the blood of the Heavenly Phoenix. From this aspect, Xu Yourong was her true successor, one that was even more important than her own son.

"But she is not a good person." Chen Changsheng stared into Xu Yourong's eyes as he calmly and firmly said, "So I will not trust her."

Xu Yourong asked him softly, "What determines what's good or evil?"

Chen Changsheng replied, "I don't want to argue with you, and I don't have a complete grasp on those arguments about good and evil. I only know that she has killed many innocents."

Ever since she took the reins of power several centuries ago, the number of people that had died at the hands of the Tianhai Divine Empress was too great to be counted. There were members of the Imperial clan, members of the Orthodoxy's conservative faction, greedy and corrupt officials, and lawbreaking criminals, but nobody could deny that in this course of events, she had killed many people that should not have been killed.

"Martial Uncle Su also killed many people. Although only by accident, the number of innocents that died to his sword is also not small."

"Intentionally or unintentionally, that seems to me a very big difference."

"Then what evidence do you have, that you can be so sure that those innocents were intentionally killed by the Empress?"

"Because of Zhou Tong." Chen Changsheng looked into her eyes and said, "Zhou Tong is a man of pure evil. He finds enjoyment in cruelty, interest in tormenting all living things. From the day the Empress began using this man, it became impossible to say that she unintentionally committed evil."

After a moment of silence, Xu Yourong replied, "Do you have to assign all of Zhou Tong's crimes to the Empress? This is rather unfair."

Chen Changsheng replied, "If the dog's owner doesn't tie up their dog and the dog bites someone, it's certainly the owner's crime. When using a knife to kill a person, it's naturally the wielder of the knife that is at fault."

The whole world knew that Zhou Tong was an evil dog raised by the Empress, a sharp knife.

Xu Yourong looked into his eyes, saying, "You're willing to defend Martial Uncle Su, but you won't empathize with the Empress. In the end, it's still prejudice."

Chen Changsheng replied, "Just how many people Senior Su Li killed in the Longevity Sect and Xunyang City, I did not see, but…the slaughters performed by the Empress and Zhou Tong in the capital are all written down in books, and I've read those books. I know that those words were all written in blood, very striking."

Silence reigned once more. For a long time, the two did not speak.