Calamity Messenger

Chapter 161 - 128: Demon Path Evil Land

Yan Qing grabbed her fingers, twisting them outward, Shang Xinlei quickly pulled back: "They’re going to break, they’re going to break!"

"Hmph." Yan Qing lowered his head and began eating fried dumplings.

"You still haven’t answered me." Shang Xinlei asked, "What exactly do you, this pig, want to achieve by coming to the Thief’s House?"

"To take control of the Thief’s House." Yan Qing said flatly, "The safest place in this world is none other than the Thief’s House, the most convenient place likewise. As long as I control this place, I will always be invincible and can go anywhere, no one can trap me, no one can threaten me."

"Then, I can take off the mask and no longer need to hide my identity."

When Shang Xinlei mentioned Shang Xuanwen, Yan Qing realized the flaw in his thinking: What about the main city, hasn’t Shang Xuanwen been assassinated multiple times in the main city? Rumors often spread that the Emperor of Nocturnal Heaven City randomly kills people on the streets; the main city isn’t absolutely safe.

Even if you become stronger, there will always be someone stronger, unless you cultivate to the Ninth Turn. By comparison, the Thief’s House is the most reasonable target. Once you become the master of the Thief’s House, Yan Qing will have no more worries.

Ultimately, his idea is still about survival, not because of any grand goal. It was previously about ’finding a way to survive’, now it’s ’finding a way to live better’, but that’s how most things are. The power minister who usurps the throne was at first a loyal official, the Emperor who unifies the world started as a rebel hiding in the mountains, no one knows how far they can go, just take one step at a time.

Because I can walk, I will keep going.

Seeing Yan Qing’s eyes gradually become determined, Shang Xinlei couldn’t help but smile, the corners of her mouth turning upward, her eyebrows arching.

She slowly said, "Then you might be disappointed. The future master of the Thief’s House can only be me. But if you cling to my leg and beg me, I wouldn’t be against letting you stay here as a servant."

"After finishing, you can leave." Yan Qing couldn’t be bothered with her, finished the last fried dumpling, and prepared to leave.

"We haven’t gotten to dessert yet!" Shang Xinlei stopped him, bringing out two large cups of ice cream from the room—what kind of Secret Realm produces ice cream anyway?

Yan Qing had to sit back down, after all, he couldn’t waste food.

"Look, you’ve got it on your bandages. Let me take them off for you? Otherwise, it’ll attract bugs."

"Sure enough, it’ll attract bugs, and bugs can even talk."

"Bugs can talk?... Get lost!"

Unable to out-argue him, Shang Xinlei felt dissatisfied and stomped, but Yan Qing dodged quickly, locking her long leg between his two legs, and she couldn’t pull it out.

While sparring under the table, Yan Qing suddenly remembered something: "Do you know where there’s a Third-Turn Secret Realm that can be easily entered?"

Currently, Mouse Monk is at Xuanwu Lake Military Town, and Ye Si Jiang Shi is stationed in Ping City. He doesn’t lack First and Second-Turn Secret Realms, so he might as well look for a Third-Turn Secret Realm to try his luck. Maybe he can get a Secret Technique Book or other advanced manuals. Although there’s also a Third-Turn Secret Realm in Xuanwu Lake Military Town, the Mouse Monk obviously doesn’t have the strength to enter in a short time, and he might not even be allowed.

Yan Qing had previously tested Gai Louxian, asking why not send Jiang Shiyi Si to try the Second-Turn Secret Realm. Gai Louxian tactfully told him: Secret Realms above the Second Turn, not only the resources inside, but the process of ’conquering the Secret Realm’ is immensely valuable.

How to arrange troops, how to configure tokens, the strategies others have paid countless lives to figure out; if you could just easily learn them, wouldn’t they be losing out tremendously?

Therefore, even if the Mouse Monk has Third-Turn strength, others might not let him enter.

"A Third-Turn Secret Realm you can easily enter? That’s definitely the Demon Path Evil Land." Shang Xinlei blurted out.

"Demon Path Evil Land?"

"There are five major Demon Path Evil Lands in the Central Plains: Yunmeng Marsh, Shu Dao Mountain, Wuyou Cave, Joyful Forest, Liangshan Marsh." Shang Xinlei gazed at him, "These are places even Demonic Messengers are sure to know..."

"I don’t know!" Yan Qing said defiantly, since you’ve already seen through my facade, I’m not pretending anymore: "Why are these places considered Demon Path Evil Lands?"

"Because these places all have highly challenging Secret Realms and are far from the three major main cities. The terrain is easy to defend but hard to attack, and the environment is extremely harsh. As long as these conditions are met, it’s bound to become a Demon Path Evil Land." Shang Xinlei explained: "For example, the Yunmeng Marsh in Liang Kingdom is a marshland shrouded in mist all day long. If you garrison there, the soldiers would quickly become agitated and riot, and many things can’t be self-sustained. Transporting them from outside is extremely troublesome, so in the end, you have no choice but to abandon it."

"But the places the Court and orthodox path disdain are veritable treasures for Demonic Messengers. Demonic Messengers who’ve committed crimes and find no way out will flee to these evil lands, and over time, they become a menace to the area, but by then even the Court dares not to attack them lightly, unless led by a Foundation Establishment, otherwise even Third-Turn Messengers mostly find no return."

"But if a Foundation Establishment Messenger moves, those Demonic Messengers will just burrow into the harshest terrains and evade capture—like catching a mouse. Even if a Foundation Establishment Messenger painstakingly cleans them out, new Demonic Messengers will soon occupy the evil land again. In the end, any place that is remote, where the Emperor’s reach doesn’t extend, yet has resources, will inevitably become a gathering ground for criminals. All five of the evil lands are like this."

"In places like these, there are naturally no rules; if your fists are big enough, you can enter any Secret Realm."

Yan Qing pondered for a moment and said: "Actually, according to you, the messengers in Demon Path Evil Lands are less like those of Demon Dao and more like Loose Cultivators."

As for the criminal aspect, Yan Qing couldn’t be bothered to mention it; hasn’t his alternate identity had criminal records in any country? Where there is injustice, there will be criminals, not to mention the orthodox path isn’t much better either.

Shang Xinlei challenged him: "What do you mean by Loose Cultivators?"

"Those who hide in remote places, don’t participate in external disputes, and cultivate on their own."

"Then what about their cultivation resources? Without Spiritual Jade, they can’t even activate their tokens. How are they supposed to cultivate?"

Yan Qing immediately understood Shang Xinlei’s point: "What if it’s a Loose Cultivator who discovered a wild Secret Realm? Like those messengers in Demon Path Evil Lands."

"You should understand that developing a Secret Realm isn’t a simple task. Most Secret Realms allow over ten people to enter, and transporting materials out of the Secret Realm requires the labor of over a hundred people, not to mention how to utilize those materials." Shang Xinlei said: "If a Loose Cultivator discovers an easily exploitable wild Secret Realm, their life’s mission would be to establish a family, occupy the Secret Realm, join the Court, and use the Secret Realm’s materials to interact with the outside world."

"And the reason Demon Path Evil Lands are evil lands is that the Secret Realms inside are extremely hard to develop. Most are Third-Turn Secret Realms; even the military town struggles to extract resources from them, let alone a group of Loose Cultivators? At most, Loose Cultivators can only get some scraps from them, as for treasure chests inside, forget it, even if there are any, they’re the exclusive property of Demon Dao giants."

Yan Qing thought the same; Loose Cultivators are basically poor wretches. If they could develop the place, there’s no reason not to utilize the ever-refreshing resources inside the Secret Realm. But using the resources requires organizing manpower, and organizing manpower inevitably means establishing villages and building forces. With so many setups, it’s impossible for Loose Cultivators not to join the Court. So-called considering the bigger picture is just like this.

Shang Xinlei said: "Of course, maybe there truly are those Loose Cultivators you mentioned, who occupy a Secret Realm on their own, preferring not to fully develop it rather than expose it, but these are very, very rare. The vast majority of Loose Cultivators are like rootless duckweed; if they don’t join the Court or aristocratic families, they’ll almost certainly turn to Demon Dao."

Even with dessert, a trace of gloom still appeared in Shang Xinlei’s eyes, revealing her clear disdain for Demonic Messengers.

"Why so certain?" Yan Qing asked.

"Because of Spiritual Jade."

Shang Xinlei said: "Spiritual Jade is the foundation of all a messenger’s power, but without organizational support and no Secret Realm backing, where does a Loose Cultivator get Spiritual Jade from? And without Spiritual Jade, they’re no different from mortals. In fact, even a group of farmers with pitchforks could bring them down. Whether to protect themselves or exploit others, they almost all end up on the same path: Plunder."