Chapter 458
The tone of Qingyun Dasheng was hard to decipher—was it more about explaining, or was it fueled by anger?
"Xuanwei Realm, where the human race reigns supreme. How dare we, the demon race, stick our necks out? The Immortal Sect treats us like pigs and dogs. Does the Great Freedom Demon Ancestor really consider us as his right-hand men?"
"Our demon race has long lost the fundamental great law. We are like a pile of loose sand. If the Great Freedom Demon Ancestor wants to cultivate a foundation, how could we dare to resist?"
"For several epochs, who has been the first to suffer misfortune? Isn’t it always our demon race?"
Having understood, it became clear that Qingyun Dasheng's argument was about one thing— the Seven Great Saints were merely seeking a way to survive.
When the Great Freedom Demon Ancestor was alive, they were loyal to him.
Now that he was dead, they were merely faithful friends of the Immortal Sect.
"Master, our demon race has an old saying: the Taishang Dao has a long history and should understand our history better than anyone, and know our predicament..." Qingyun Dasheng looked earnestly at Master Mingde, "Now that we, the Seven Great Saints, have betrayed the Great Freedom Demon Ancestor, it is impossible for us to betray the Xuanwei Five Sects again!"
Upon hearing this, Master Mingde lowered his head in contemplation for a while. After some time, he looked at Qingyun Dasheng, not saying whether he believed him or not, but simply asked, "Tell me the truth: have you Seven Great Saints ever practiced the Great Freedom Demon Ancestor's methods?"
"…No…"
Master Mingde closed his eyes.
"Yes! Yes, we have!" Qingyun Dasheng panicked, "In order to take control of the Seven Saints' Heaven, we had to refine the treasures of the Seven Saints' Heaven, so we practiced a secret method!"
"But we do not have the bloodline of the Great Freedom Demon Ancestor, and we absolutely did not learn the fundamental great law of that demonic sect."
"This... could there be future troubles?"
Master Mingde's gaze suddenly turned sympathetic. He looked at Qingyun Dasheng, his tone tinged with a sigh, "In that case, I cannot trust you Seven Great Saints."
"Why…"
"You demons have lost the fundamental great law, and the iron rules of cultivation have not even been passed down?"
Master Mingde's tone carried a hint of surprise, as if he found the Seven Great Saints somewhat lacking in intelligence.
The iron rules of cultivation?
Zheng Fa raised his head and looked at the transformation gods in the hall, only to find that the faces of the Xuanwei Five Sects were filled with understanding.
So, I’m sitting at the same table as this pitiful Qingyun Dasheng?
"May I ask, Master, what are the iron rules of cultivation?"
"The so-called iron rules are merely a term we use; in fact, there are no explicit texts in the Immortal Sect..." Master Mingde glanced at the bewildered Zheng Fa, as if he felt the need to explain, "The iron rules are some rules that cannot be violated on the path of cultivation—at least, no one has succeeded in violating them."
Zheng Fa and Sister Zhang exchanged glances, both listening intently.
"The most widely known and certain rule," Master Mingde suddenly raised his eyes and glanced at Xie Qingxue, his gaze carrying a deeper meaning, "is that a cultivator cannot betray their own lineage."
"Cannot betray? Lineage?"
This statement left not only Zheng Fa puzzled but also Qingyun Dasheng in confusion.
"Lineage refers to the inheritance of great cultivators, or the fundamental great law. My Five Sects and the Thirteen Demon Gates each have their own lineage." Master Mingde looked at Qingyun Dasheng, shaking his head, "If the secret method for refining the treasures of the cave heavens comes from the Great Freedom Demon Ancestor..."
At this point, everyone understood.
Zheng Fa realized many things:
The fate of the Tianhe Ancestor.
The remaining directory of the "Nine Transformations Golden Elixir Method" in the mountain stone.
He felt increasingly grateful for his caution—he had not only refrained from attempting to reference the "Nine Transformations Golden Elixir Method," but he had also never looked at the Great Freedom Demon Ancestor's secret methods.
On the other hand, he was somewhat confused, a confusion that compelled him to ask, "What is a great cultivator? Can every technique created by someone become a lineage? Wouldn't that mean the one who created the path of cultivation could control all cultivators in the world?"
Seeing Zheng Fa ask, Master Mingde did not hide anything and explained directly, "To address your last question, the one who created the path of cultivation has long since left the world..."
"Left the world?"
Zheng Fa was even more astonished, wondering if such a person truly existed—and that they were not dead?
"We do not even know how many great beings created the path of cultivation, but one thing is clear: those who attain the fruit of the Dao do not die. When you ask what a great cultivator is, in the eyes of my Five Sects, it is someone who has attained the fruit of the Dao."
"So, we believe they are not dead."
After hearing this, Zheng Fa asked again, "Dao fruit?"
"To attain the Dao fruit is to become an immortal and a progenitor." Master Mingde thought for a moment and explained further, "The cultivation realms of the various sects differ, but they are largely similar. I will only speak of my Taishang Dao."
"Initially, there are three realms: Foundation Establishment, Golden Elixir, and Nascent Soul, which we call the Three Realms of Transcendence."
"Subsequently, there are the realms of Transformation God, Yang God, and Corpse Transformation, which we refer to as the Three Realms of Ascension."
"After Corpse Transformation, one attains immortality and the fruit of the Dao."
"Becoming Void is the Yang God, and I have now stepped into Corpse Transformation."
Master Mingde's explanation was sincere, and it was Zheng Fa's first time gaining a comprehensive understanding of cultivation.
"Dao fruit, oh, so there are six realms before becoming an immortal?"
Xie Qingxue spoke up, "Actually, the Xuanwei Five Sects are all like this; it's just that the fundamental great laws of each sect differ."
Zheng Fa glanced at Xie Qingxue, curious about where the Tianhe Sect's fundamental great law came from—was it from the Tianhe Progenitor?
That seemed hard to explain, especially since the Tianhe Sect was made up of traitors who had long betrayed the Tianhe Progenitor.
"So the Great Freedom Demon Ancestor is an immortal?" Qingyun Dasheng finally understood, his body swaying as if greatly impacted, "If we practiced that secret method, does that mean we cannot resist?"
"I don't know, but it is very likely."
Indeed, the things of the Great Freedom Demon Ancestor were not so easily obtained.
No matter how much the Seven Great Saints schemed, they were still outmatched in strength.
To be fair, this situation could not be entirely blamed on the Seven Great Saints—if the Youming Immortal had died, they would at least not be as desperate as they were now.
"What if not?" Qingyun Dasheng's eyes rekindled with hope as he looked at Master Mingde, as if seeking a lifeline.
"There is another iron rule of cultivation..."
"Hmm?"
"Only the Dao fruit can counter the Dao fruit."
"…"
Qingyun Dasheng's face gradually turned pale. He looked at Master Mingde, who had closed his eyes and said nothing more.
He let out a bitter laugh, as if he understood the despair in those words.
Zheng Fa shook his head inwardly. According to Master Mingde, the demon race had no fundamental great law.
This meant there were no Dao fruit bearers.
In that case, there was no other way to deal with the Great Freedom Demon Ancestor.
Unless the Xuanwei Five Sects were willing to intervene, but Master Mingde clearly did not trust this group of demons who had practiced secret methods.
"Then... thank you for the information, Master. Qingyunzi... I take my leave!"
The hall fell silent for a whole incense stick's worth of time, no one speaking. Finally, it was Qingyun Dasheng's voice that broke the silence. He bowed to Master Mingde and left the grand hall, flying straight toward the sea.
Zheng Fa watched his somewhat resolute figure, feeling a sense of desolation in his heart.
He didn't particularly like Qingyun Dasheng. After all, when the demon race breached the Hundred Immortal Alliance, many mortal cultivators were killed, and even if Qingyun Dasheng had handed over a few demons, could that really make up for it?
Everyone has their own standards of judgment, but Zheng Fa knew that for the dead, there is no way to make amends.
At this moment, he felt no sympathy for the Seven Great Saints either:
They were merely facing death, while the millions of human beings on that island had already perished.
He couldn't muster any sympathy.
The desolation in Zheng Fa's heart stemmed from the sense that he seemed to glimpse a more tragic world—a world where even transformation gods like the Seven Great Saints lived in constant fear.
The silence in the grand hall grew heavier.
"Actually, there is not no way to respond," Master Mingde suddenly said.
Zheng Fa looked up and saw that Master Mingde's expression was no longer filled with the worry from before.
Whether it was to encourage everyone or if he truly had confidence, there was a hint of a smile on his face.
"The spiritual energy is waning; there must be Dao fruit bearers walking in the world. The Great Freedom Demon Ancestor is actually the weakest of the Dao fruit bearers."
"…"
At this moment, the Yaochi transformation god was also nodding, "The Great Freedom Demon Ancestor was killed once by the Tianhe Progenitor. Now that the followers of the Great Freedom Demon Sect are dwindling, his revival is likely to be impossible."
Upon hearing this, Zheng Fa quickly asked, "Dao fruit bearers do not die, but can the lineage be extinguished?"
A glimmer of appreciation flashed across Master Mingde's face, as if he admired Zheng Fa's sharpness, "Exactly. Otherwise, if the physical body of the Great Freedom Demon Ancestor were to be extinguished, there would never be a day when he could descend upon Xuanwei."
This meant that the Great Freedom Demon Ancestor was indeed somewhat unfortunate.
When the spiritual cave emerged, it likely triggered the Great Freedom Demon Ancestor's sense of crisis, fearing that his followers would be wiped out by the Xuanwei Immortal Sect.
That was why he was so eager to descend.
When Master Mingde said this person was the weakest, it was likely not mere self-comfort.
In a chaotic world, only those without any capital would act first.
After belittling the Great Freedom Demon Ancestor, Master Mingde turned to Xie Qingxue and said, "Earlier, when Qingyun Dasheng was present, I couldn't speak plainly. Although we do not have Dao fruit bearers, the Dao fruit does not necessarily belong to humans!"
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