Mysteries of Immortal Puppet Master

Chapter 1311: Chapter 512: Demon Desire (Part 2)

In Qin De’s eyes, Xiao Juxia was quite unfathomable!

Because the latter knew very well that this was Cloud Prison, a place overseen by the Evil Slaying Hall. To infiltrate so stealthily and appear before him with such composure was not something an ordinary cultivator could do.

Xiao Juxia did not answer Qin De’s questions but stepped out of the shadows of the cell, coming to his side.

Qin De was initially alarmed by his boldness, but soon he was pleasantly surprised to find that none of Xiao Juxia’s actions attracted any response from the Evil Slaying Hall.

Xiao Juxia said, "Your ’Saint Thief Scripture’ is indeed unique, very distinctive. Quite impressive. There are few in the world who can read Confucian classics to such an extent."

Qin De smiled bitterly, "Since you’ve seen the spectacle, you know I actually lost miserably. Why rub it in?"

Xiao Juxia said, "I admire you. You lost not because of a lack of talent, but because you didn’t truly draw from a wealth of sources. The creation of ’Saint Thief Scripture’ is still too incomplete. You are especially lacking in one area. If you had it, you could defeat Zhao Hansheng!"

Qin De was startled, and immediately asked, "What is it?"

Xiao Juxia smiled and said, "The Demon Path."

Qin De was again taken aback, "The Demon Path?"

He spread his hands, expressing confusion, "When I started creating the ’Saint Thief Scripture’, I also referenced many demon skill classics from the Myriad Phenomena Sect..."

Qin De shook his head, interrupting, "You are well-versed in Confucian classics, interpreting saints through Confucianism and using the saint as a metaphor for a thief, reaching an advanced state. Perhaps you drew much from demon skills too, but actually, your understanding of the Demon Path is too superficial."

"Zhao Hansheng’s ’Heart is Reason’ left you defenseless. But if you supplemented it with the Demon Path, it would be entirely different. The heart is reason, but the demon is desire. The battle between reason and desire reveals the true essence. Zhao Hansheng’s Heart Learning talks only of the heart, not of desire. If you could introduce desire into the heart, verifying the heart through desire, why would Zhao Hansheng not be defeated?"

These words shook Qin De’s heart violently.

He recalled the previous debates vividly, with a radiance in his eyes.

"Indeed!"

"Heart Learning speaks of ’expelling desire and preserving reason’, but without desire, where does reason come from? The struggle between desire and reason is essentially two sides of the same coin. If one can introduce desire into reason, verifying reason through desire, the foundation of Heart Learning will be shaken."

Qin De grew more and more excited as he spoke.

Receiving this guidance from Xiao Juxia was like a drowning man grasping a lifeline.

He stood up, causing the chains to clink and clang, and bowed respectfully, asking, "Your Excellency... no, Senior, please instruct me."

Xiao Juxia laughed heartily, pointing to the ground, and sat down cross-legged first, "Since you want to learn, I will teach you a demon skill. After you hear it, you can decide whether to change your cultivation technique."

Qin De frowned as he listened, having already reached the Golden Core, how could he switch cultivation techniques? But before this enigmatic figure, perhaps there existed some unconventional powerful methods yet to be known.

Qin De followed Xiao Juxia and sat cross-legged on the ground.

Xiao Juxia’s expression turned serious, "Listen carefully, this technique is called—’Ten Thousand Methods of Falling Demon Technique’!"

The night deepened.

Xiao Juxia taught attentively, and the more Qin De listened, the more engrossed he became, shock and ecstasy gradually filling his face.

And just in this deep night, Wang Yu secretly visited Zhong Dao.

Evil Slaying Hall’s main hall.

Most of the lights in the hall were out, except for a solitary lamp still burning behind the large mystic iron writing desk at the head of the hall.

Under the lamp, Zhong Dao sat firmly like a mountain, his broad shoulders straight as an unyielding iron tower.

He held a dossier in his hands, the deep vertical lines between his brows appearing all the more chiseled under the lamplight. The edges of the writing desk were sharp, just as angular as the man himself.

Suddenly, he looked up.

A figure slowly materialized.

The man wore a cloud pattern daoist robe, with the colors of Danxia flowing on it, standing out in the night. He nodded with a smile, exuding an air of confidence, as if his late-night visit was on invitation.

It was none other than the current Peak Master of Danxia Peak—Wang Yu.

"Master Zhong burning the midnight oil over dossiers, you are truly diligent," Wang Yu said as he walked to the writing desk, offering his praise generously.

Zhong Dao put down the dossier, his sharp gaze landing on Wang Yu’s face, "What affair brings the Peak Master here at this hour?"

Wang Yu smiled slightly, gently swishing his horsetail whisk, and walked leisurely onto the dais, standing in front of Zhong Dao. The colors of Danxia on his robe brightened and dimmed with his breath.

"There’s an old case I’d like to discuss with Master Zhong," Wang Yu said.

Zhong Dao’s brow twitched slightly, "An old case? Does it concern my Evil Slaying Hall?"

"Whether it’s related to the Evil Slaying Hall is yet to be determined," Wang Yu said meaningfully, "but it is certainly connected to the Myriad Images Sect."

Zhong Dao snorted coldly, "The Evil Slaying Hall is a branch of the Myriad Images Sect. Speak, what is this old case that you would trouble a peak master yourself?"

Wang Yu then recounted this: "Years ago, my Danxia Peak accepted an order, placed by the royal family of Qingping Country. However, after completing the order and delivering all the elixir pills, the Qingping royal family failed to fulfill their end of the agreement. Do you know why, Master Zhong?"

Zhong Dao frowned deeply, his demeanor impatient, "Wang Yu, this is the Evil Slaying Hall—not a place for you to collect debts. You know my temper, speak plainly!"

Wang Yu smiled slightly, unfazed, and gently placed a jade slip on the desk, nudging it towards Zhong Dao.

"Master Zhong might want to take a look first."

Zhong Dao paused for a few moments, and still, he reached out to take the jade slip.

Investing his divine sense into it, a fierce light flashed in Zhong Dao’s eyes.

It turned out that back then, the Qingping Country’s royal family did not intentionally default on payments but were already annihilated.

The reason for their destruction was internal political struggles.

The previous monarch of Qingping Country had intentionally brought in Confucian cultivators, appointing them as officials en masse. In the name of "enlightening the people" and "educating," the Confucian cultivators gradually infiltrated the upper echelons of power.

They first set up academies, lecturing on Confucian classics; then advised the monarch to reform the court with Confucian rites and laws; and finally, they comprehensively implemented Confucian systems, even labeling the original myriad techniques as "heretical," strictly prohibiting their practice.

In just twenty years, Qingping Country was unrecognizable.

The once diverse cultivation world turned into a purely Confucian realm. Those unwilling to adapt were either expelled, imprisoned, or simply vanished.

The new monarch of Qingping Country, unwilling to see power slip away, gathered forces to attempt a correction, but completely failed.

Now, Qingping Country could be seen as a miniature version of Huazhang Country!

Zhong Dao looked up at Wang Yu, expressionless, "I don’t see how this matter is related to my Evil Slaying Hall."

Wang Yu smiled, gently dusting off his horsetail whisk, "To speak of the connection, the mastermind behind Qingping Country’s reform was a Great Scholar from Huazhang Country, who ranks alongside Duanmu Zhang and Zhao Hansheng."

Zhong Dao inquired, "And its relation to my Evil Slaying Hall?"

Wang Yu maintained his smile, undeterred by the increasingly tense atmosphere, "The changes in Qingping Country didn’t happen overnight. The ambition of Huazhang Country is not a single person’s scheme. Ultimately, my peak’s uncollected payment is also due to Confucian cultivators."

"Qin De in Cloud Prison is a Confucian cultivator, likely tied to this affair."

"I humbly request Master Zhong to issue an order allowing me to interrogate Qin De and thoroughly investigate this matter."

"Hehehe." Zhong Dao laughed coldly, agitated, "Evidence?"

Wang Yu looked straight at Zhong Dao, "Once I interrogate, evidence will be forthcoming!"

Zhong Dao’s gaze turned sharp as a blade, "I fear all you’ll find is dead evidence."

He already grasped Wang Yu’s intention.

The nonsense about elixir debts was merely an excuse.

Wang Yu’s real motive for bringing it up was to show Zhong Dao a fact—that where Confucian cultivators tread, the nation is destabilized!

Back then, it was precisely because of the Qingping Country coup that led the Myriad Images Sect’s Sect Leader Dong Chen, Danxia Peak’s Peak Master Wang Yu, and others to change their attitude towards the Confucian cultivator group.

Subsequently, the upper echelon of the Myriad Images Sect used Qin De to suppress the Confucian cult group, hindering their growth to this day.

Today, Zhao Hansheng nearly defeated Qin De in a debate.

Should they lose completely in an official debate, the barriers to the Confucian cult group’s development would disappear. This was a scenario the upper echelons of the Myriad Images Sect did not want to see.

Thus, Wang Yu came at night to remove the prisoner Qin De, ostensibly for interrogation but in reality to eliminate him!