Devil Venerable Also Wants to Know

Chapter 9 – Polis and Alkaid

Wenren È thought he really needed to have a conversation with Yin Hanjiang. Yin Hanjiang was the Left Protector of the first and foremost demonic sect. There was no need for him to be so timid that he had to wait until Wenren È was asleep to secretly sip some wine.

Back when he first picked up that child, Wenren È hadn’t wanted a puppet.

He flicked his fingers, and the black robe discarded to the floor draped over Yin Hanjiang. Yin Hanjiang had just taken in the Snow Flame and was full of yang energy, so his wet clothes and hair had already dried. Yin Hanjiang stuck his arms through his robe, tied up his hair again, and got down on one knee before Wenren È, sword in hand, deferent and respectful.

Wenren È slowly said, “Protector Yin, back when this Venerable ordered you to become a sword cultivator, did you have any complaints?”

Back then, after Wenren È brought that child home to his sect, he had his fortune and aptitudes looked into. Yin Hanjiang had a pure metal spiritual root, and his birth had been influenced by Alkaid, the seventh star of the Big Dipper, also known as the Army Crushing Star, favoring offense and possessing great destructive power. In mortal armies, this was suited toward being a vanguard or suicide unit. Wenren È’s star was Polis, also known as the General Star, and was the most suitable pairing with Alkaid.

With these kinds of aptitudes, Wenren È thought Yin Hanjiang was suited to being a sword cultivator as well as his vanguard, so handed him a sword and a manual he’d stolen from someplace. From then on, Yin Hanjiang became Wenren È’s sword.

Yin Hanjiang rarely heard Wenren È reveal his thoughts to him. He raised his head to look at Wenren È, eyes shining like stars. “Venerable…”

He had something to say but hesitated. Wenren È knew Yin Hanjiang was stubborn and wouldn’t say what was actually on his mind unless forced to, so he said coldly, “Speak.”

After getting Wenren È’s order, Yin Hanjiang spoke smoothly. “When this subordinate was five years old, foreign tribes attacked and slaughtered my entire village. This subordinate was fortunate and barely survived. Seeing someone pass by, I thought the worst that could happen was that I would die, so I mustered up the strength to grab that person’s robes. That’s how this subordinate met the Venerable.”

He rarely spoke so many words, so Wenren È sat and listened earnestly. 

“There is something the Venerable doesn’t know.” Yin Hanjiang patted the storage belt on his waist, and an old sword spotted with rust appeared on the ground before him. It was the one Wenren È had given him. “When this subordinate was eighteen and had reached Foundation Establishment, I took the sword the Venerable had given me and left to find the foreign warriors who slaughtered my village.”

That year… Wenren È absently thought back to something.

The corner of Yin Hanjiang’s lips curved slightly, as if in a smile. He stroked that old sword and said quietly, “This subordinate saw the Venerable, wearing silver armor with a spear in hand, draped in a red cloak, leading a group of battered soldiers to face the invading forces.”

Wenren È had raised his broken spear and spoken to those ragged soldiers, “We can flee, but do remember, behind us are the commoners living at the border. If the city wall falls, we can form a wall with our bodies, but if we flee, do you want the common people to use their bodies to protect us?”

Wenren È had not been using any superhuman powers. He’d sealed his spiritual energy, and alongside his comrades, fought off the enemy with the strength of a mortal man. After several days, they had successfully defended the borders and killed all the enemy tribesmen who had attacked the village that day.

Yin Hanjiang was afraid the Venerable would notice him, so acted like an ordinary commoner and hid in the border town, waiting for Wenren È to return triumphantly with his troops.

What was the Path of Slaughter? Yin Hanjiang watched those smiling soldiers return after their victory and began to understand.

The Path of Slaughter could be to act as the blade that slaughtered the masses, or the sword that protected the people. Killing to stop death, fighting to stop war, was Wenren È’s path.

Yin Hanjiang offered up the sword with both hands. “While this subordinate was hiding and watching the Venerable’s return, there was only one wish in my heart, to be the Venerable’s vanguard.”

He carefully held the sword in his lap, hand resting on the rust-stained steel, as if he was telling him with every action that Yin Hanjiang was willing to be Wenren È’s sword.

Wenren È never realized that something like that had happened a hundred years ago. He had to strengthen his mental state in the midst of countless battles, so in order to temper his mind, he would often seal his powers and go to the mortal world, starting from a foot soldier and rising through the ranks all the way to a general leading forces into battle.

When cold blades sliced across his face, when his fellows’ blood splashed across his cheeks, life and death was the most clear-cut truth.

The most difficult part of the Path of Slaughter was how to remain clear-headed in the midst of death, to not blame oneself for it, and to not go mad from it.

After innumerable battles, the Seven Killing Halberd was forged on the battlefield. Wenren È thought it would be an evil weapon that consumed souls, but didn’t expect that what the most savage grounds on Earth would give rise to was a weapon made to protect.

When Wenren È entered this path, he had suffered immense trauma and wanted to gain power by taking lives, thinking to ascend to divinity by stepping on innumerable corpses and becoming a heartless demon. But in that battle that Yin Hanjiang had witnessed, the one where the Seven Killing Halberd had finally taken form, Wenren È had to acknowledge something—since his youth, he had never changed.

The Supreme Elder of Violet Spirit Pavilion hadn’t understood how Wenren È could have power surpassing the Mahayana stage, sufficient to subdue a wandering immortal. She only knew to hide from tribulations and seclude herself for eight hundred years, so how could she understand that the Seven Killing Halberd upheld not just the power of one demonic cultivator, but the wishes of the common people in the three hundred years of war Wenren È had participated in?

When the Seven Killing Halberd was forged, the General Star shone, and the Army Crushing Star along with it.

Wenren È’s moment of enlightenment was also the moment Yin Hanjiang had entered the Dao.

“So that was it.”

Wenren È beckoned with a finger, and the vicious demonic sword that Yin Hanjiang wielded landed obediently in his palm. If gods exist, demons must exist. Wenren È had obtained this demonic sword at the Blood Hell. It was a weapon that had collected the murderous energy of a hundred thousand evil spirits, its power surpassing the first-grade magic items of the cultivation world.

Magic items were split into the three stages of magic treasure, spiritual treasure, and magic artifact, and each stage was split into upper, middle, and lower grade. Also above magic artifacts were immortal artifacts, which didn’t originate in the cultivation world. Only a few large sects had immortal artifacts to guard their locations. Demonic artifacts were equivalent to immortal artifacts. When Yin Hanjiang fused with the demonic sword, he could unleash power far beyond his own realm, but it also harmed his soul.

At the time, Yin Hanjiang had begged Wenren È to bestow the demonic sword on him, so that he could follow Wenren È and be his Left Protector. By using his own body to feed demons, he gained power far beyond that of a Body Unity cultivator.

Yin Hanjiang had corpse energy in his body, which allowed him to fuse with the demonic sword, but also caused him a lot of suffering. His soul constantly had to fight the demonic sword, and he had only avoided being corrupted by it because of his dedication to Wenren È.

“This sword doesn’t suit this Venerable’s vanguard.” Wenren È tossed aside the demonic sword and lifted Yin Hanjiang out of his kneeling posture. “This Venerable will forge you a better one.”

“It’s because this subordinate is too weak, and has to rely on the demonic sword’s power,” Yin Hanjiang said.

“No need to worry,” Wenren È said. “As this Venerable’s vanguard, you should naturally follow this Venerable throughout every life. From the cultivation realm to the immortal realm or the demon realm or the divine realm, you must follow me no matter where I go, so how could you let this demonic sword impede your progress?”

The sword he would make for Yin Hanjiang could not in any way be inferior to the demonic sword. In order to forge a legendary weapon, timing, location, and human qualification all needed to be right. For timing, the Great Sect War was approaching and the spiritual energy and fighting intent stirred by so many cultivators was a perfect opportunity. The place was also set, the flames underneath the Thousand Mile Ice Plains being the most suitable location to forge the sword. Also, Yin Hanjiang had awakened to the depths of the Army Crushing Star’s meaning, and with the assistance of the Seven Killing Star, the human qualifications were also met.

The only issue was the materials. Wenren È dug around in his Qiankun sleeve. He had collected many treasures over the years, but none of them suited Yin Hanjiang and they could only serve as supplemental materials.

While looking, Wenren È found the Abusive Romance book, and when his hand landed on the book’s cover, he suddenly remembered that the book detailed many legendary treasures, the Snow Flame being only one of which.

In the book, Hè Wenzhao had reached Nascent Soul stage after absorbing the Snow Flame, conveniently right at the beginning of the Great Sect War. Nascent Soul and above cultivators were told to follow the sect elders and help set up an array, in order to serve as the main force of the war. The Great Sect War raged for ten years, and Hè Wenzhao had just reached Nascent Soul, so his power was lower than his fellows. The bonded weapon he had refined at Foundation Establishment stage was broken, and his foundation seriously damaged.

By the end of the war, both sides had sustained heavy casualties. Many sect leaders and wandering immortals had fallen by Wenren È’s hands, and Wenren È himself had hidden after suffering serious injuries, ending up saved by Baili Qingmiao.

Baili Qingmiao, after treating Wenren È, heard Hè Wenzhao’s foundation had been damaged, and unless a suitable treasure was found to create a new bonded weapon, he would age and die within five years.

Baili Qingmiao couldn’t stop crying as she saw her shixiong bedridden with grave injuries. When she heard that there was a spiritual realm at the Golden Coast Cliffs, in which one could find magical pills or materials, she secretly ran off to look for something that could heal her shixiong.

On the way, she ran into Wenren È who, on hearing she was planning to face danger alone, accompanied her on her journey. After facing innumerable dangers at the Golden Coast Cliffs, they finally found the spiritual realm and within it, the Shattered Mountain Meteorite. Baili Qingmiao giddily took the treasure to Hè Wenzhao, not mentioning a word of how much danger she had gone through and only wishing to see her shixiong recover.

But while she had been searching for a year, Hè Wenzhao had been on the brink of death a few times, and his shimei Liu Xinye, seeing her shixiong undergoing a qi deviation, forcibly dual cultivated with him despite herself being only at Core Formation stage, using her own true yin to save Hè Wenzhao’s life. Due to that, she dropped from Core Formation to Foundation Establishment stage.

Hè Wenzhao, even with Liu Xinye’s help, didn’t manage to return to his original level, though his life had at least been saved. With the addition of the treasure Baili Qingmiao had found, he secluded for three years, refining the Shattered Mountain Meteorite, and rose to Deity Transformation stage in one go.

Baili Qingmiao found out what had happened between Hè Wenzhao and Liu Xinye during that period and cried daily for three years, but whenever she saw a sickly-looking Liu Xinye practicing with a group of rookie disciples, she couldn’t help but feel bad. Liu Xinye was another natural genius with aptitudes comparable to Baili Qingmiao’s, and in the sect everyone had revolved around her, but now that she had fallen to Foundation Establishment stage, and that many disciples accused her of taking advantage of Hè Wenzhao and ostracized her, there was no way Baili Qingmiao could take up an issue with her. She just had to grit her teeth and bear it.

After Hè Wenzhao exited seclusion, he wanted to find an elixir for Liu Xinye to restore her cultivation. Baili Qingmiao had been holding back her anger for three years and had a huge fight with Hè Wenzhao, demanding to know whether he had feelings for Liu Xinye.

Hè Wenzhao grabbed Baili Qingmiao’s shoulder and said soothingly, “Baili-shimei, you saw how injured I was at the time. Liu-shimei acted on her own accord. I didn’t even know what had happened! Qingmiao, let me tell you, ever since we were kids, the only one for me has been you. But I owe a debt to Liu-shimei, and I won’t be able to live comfortably for the rest of this life if I don’t repay it. It would also become an inner demon in my future tribulations. Shimei, please understand this once, I have to help her! And Liu-shimei is in such a bad situation. Don’t you feel sympathy?”

Baili Qingmiao pointed to her chest and said tearfully, “Shixiong, you only see how Liu-shimei damaged her foundation for your sake, but what about me? All those times I risked my life at the Golden Coast Cliffs? Just because you didn’t see those, shixiong, do they not exist to you?”

“Of course not!” Hè Wenzhao grabbed Baili Qingmiao. “Shimei, you and I swore to live and die together. Pain on your body is pain in my heart!”

Hè Wenzhao did all he could to coax Baili Qingmiao, either catching fireflies with her in the mountains and releasing them to light up the night sky, or using Deity Transformation stage power to bring her above the clouds, sitting with her and speaking sweet words.

Eventually, Baili Qingmiao’s temper faded, and she even accompanied Hè Wenzhao to find a cure for Liu Xinye. She thought that after she found a cure, shixiong would have no more obligation to Liu Xinye, but in the end, it was Liu Xinye who hurt her the most cruelly, showing no gratitude for everything Baili Qingmiao had done for her.

What was also worth mentioning was that Liu Xinye was the girl who got refined into lamp oil by Yin Hanjiang. In the end, she paid her debt to Baili Qingmiao with her life.

Everything one gets in life is predetermined.

Wenren È thought back to this plotline, but he had no interest in Baili Qingmiao and Hè Wenzhao’s abusive relationship that dragged on for several hundred years. The thing that caught his attention was the Shattered Mountain Meteorite.

Hè Wenzhao had refined it into a fan, so he could look fittingly cool for a male lead.

Hè Wenzhao’s lightning root and Yin Hanjiang’s metal root were both associated with metal in the five elements, so a material suitable for Hè Wenzhao should be suitable for Yin Hanjiang. Wenren È wouldn’t steal a treasure which was destined to belong to someone else, like the Snow Flame, which he traded for with Baili Qingmiao.

But the Shattered Mountain Meteorite was originally obtained by Wenren È for Baili Qingmiao. The Lord of Demons had full rights to decide what to do with something that originally belonged to him.

And why should the Lord of Demons give something of his to Hè Wenzhao?

Wenren È had a karmic relation with Baili Qingmiao, but he had no connection to Hè Wenzhao. Hè Wenzhao could die for all he cared, but he certainly wouldn’t use something that belonged to him to save Hè Wenzhao.

Thinking that, Wenren È beckoned to Yin Hanjiang. “Come here.”

Yin Hanjiang hesitantly approached and sat at Wenren È’s side. Wenren È said, “There is a spiritual realm at the Golden Coast Cliffs, in which is hidden the Shattered Mountain Meteorite. In ten years, the door to the realm will open, and this Venerable will retrieve the meteorite for you, to create a legendary weapon.”

Yin Hanjiang didn’t refuse this time. The Venerable didn’t permit him to refuse.

Wenren È was pleased with his obedience and said, “The Shattered Mountain Meteorite is in this Venerable’s destiny, so I must be there to obtain it. But this Venerable is destined to face a bloody trial in the Great Sect War.”

Yin Hanjiang’s face turned gloomy on hearing this. The demonic sword sensed his mood and returned to his hand with a swish.

“Don’t worry,” Wenren È consoled, “I’m not fated to die. Cultivate well, and at the time, if I go missing, come here to find me.”

He indicated to Yin Hanjiang the place he had washed up in the book. This time, he wouldn’t need Baili Qingmiao to save him. He was entrusting his safety to Yin Hanjiang’s hands.

In Abusive Romance, Yin Hanjiang had probably searched tirelessly for Wenren È, but he would constantly have to deal with attacks from disciples of the righteous sects. By the time he found Wenren È, it was already after Wenren È had gone to the Golden Coast Cliffs and gotten the meteorite.

The book’s Wenren È had been heavily injured and knew well he wouldn’t be able to maintain his hold on the ambitious members of Xuanyuan Sect, so he didn’t contact his subordinates even when he could. Back then, he didn’t even trust Yin Hanjiang.

But now, after reading the book, Wenren È knew that Yin Hanjiang would never betray him.

After knowing Wenren È would face disaster, Yin Hanjiang became very anxious, training at Xuanyuan Sect every day and hoping he could break through to Void Boundary stage before the Great Sect War. Every bit he could increase his power was another bit of help he could be to his Venerable.

Wenren È had no fear despite knowing his fate. After receiving information from Shu Yanyan, he ordered the four Altar Masters to prepare for war.

It had already been six months since their meeting in that small town. With Baili Qingmiao gone, Hè Wenzhao constantly used going down the mountain to patrol or slay monsters as an excuse to meet Shu Yanyan. Though he didn’t have the Snow Flame this time, by dual cultivating with Shu Yanyan, he had reached Nascent Soul just as in the original plotline.

After reaching Nascent Soul, he could have access to more of the sect’s resources. The Sect Master and many elders also viewed Hè Wenzhao favorably, even telling him some pieces of information that only the Sect Master could know.

After Hè Wenzhao had gotten such obvious benefits, he favored Shu Yanyan even more, buying a house for her in the small town where they spent time together like husband and wife—a far cry from their enmity in the book.

In the book, Shu Yanyan had been killed by Hè Wenzhao. She was effectively a huge obstacle that Hè Wenzhao had run into early in his cultivation and which had caused him a not insignificant amount of suffering. Hè Wenzhao despised her and later, when he had gained enough power, killed her the first chance he got.

Shu Yanyan was skilled at ferreting out information and found out many of the righteous sects’ plans from Hè Wenzhao, all while feigning ignorance. She secretly sent this information to Wenren È, while also asking, “Venerable, when can I ditch Hè Wenzhao to go be with my subordinates? It’s been six months! I’ve touched just one man for six months. Do you know what it’s like to eat only one dish for six months? It’s awful!”

Wenren È: “This Venerable practices inedia and doesn’t eat food.”

Shu Yanyan: “…Then just absorbing spiritual energy from one area for six months?”

Wenren È: “When you cultivate in seclusion, can you be unsatisfied with the spiritual energy you’re absorbing, get up, and go cultivate somewhere else?”

Shu Yanyan: …

She didn’t have high hopes for her cold-hearted master’s understanding, and just secretly wished for the fighting to start sooner; best if Hè Wenzhao died in the great war.

At the same time, Baili Qingmiao finally returned to the sect and reported her advancement to her master. She became the youngest to achieve Core Formation in the whole of recorded history, shocking the entire Shangqing Sect.