Imperial Cultivation

Chapter 1249 - 1245: Striving for Victory

Chu Zhiyuan quickened his pace, his brows furrowed, his expression growing increasingly grim.

Seize Ding Chonglou’s body, make him a clone, then control the Heavenly Sword Sect, and turn the Heavenly Sword Sect against the Court, thus plunging the world into chaos.

In the chaos of the world, he would then craft a powerful artifact amidst the bloodshed.

By condensing the five auras of ferocity, despair, fear, anger, and resentment, to refine this artifact, named the Five Extremes Divine Needle.

This Five Extremes Divine Needle specifically targets the soul, with boundless power, capable of easily killing the Undying Evil Venerable.

Though this is somewhat fanciful, with many obstacles to overcome, success or failure balances in between.

Yet this viciousness makes him wary.

Originally, he thought the Undying Evil Venerable’s descent was merely for a strange treasure.

Now it seems the Undying Evil Venerable is different.

Each has their own cultivation method, their techniques differ, and their desires are different.

The previous Undying Evil Venerable sought strange treasures, the same goal as several Evil Venerables.

This Undying Evil Venerable, however, seeks to plunge the world into chaos, to stir up blood and gore.

Viewing the entire Biyuan Heaven as resources to refine treasures, could be considered utterly inhumane.

Should he succeed, who knows how many would perish.

Fortunately, Ding Chonglou had the Little Heavenly Sword protecting him, escaping at a critical moment; otherwise, he would have already been seized.

According to the Undying Evil Venerable’s secret technique, after seizing control, it is extremely hidden.

If unprepared, Sect Leader Lu Wanshan might not discover it, nor might I.

Just the thought makes one shudder.

"Heh!" Chu Zhiyuan sneered.

He slowed his pace, his brows furrowing deeper.

This Undying Evil Venerable’s divine split is different from my clone, they cannot communicate with each other.

So this wisp of divine split remembers nothing of another divine split.

A piece of good news: this divine split method cannot be used lightly, as it damages one’s own soul.

If there are still divine splits, at most, there may be one or two more, not many.

The bad news is: the previous Undying Evil Venerable only descended a golden statue, but this one descended a divine split.

What comes next?

Could there be something more excessive, more terrifying, more troublesome?

He thought of this and shook his head.

...

Imperial City

In a small yard of the Evil Extermination Department, Chu Zhiyuan and Huang Zhengyang sat facing each other.

Chu Zhiyuan put down the teacup and looked at Huang Zhengyang, whose face was heavy and grim.

Huang Zhengyang let out a long breath and slowly said, "The Undying Evil Venerable, to have reached such a stage!"

Chu Zhiyuan said, "Brother Huang, I’m afraid this is not an isolated case."

"Hmm—?" Huang Zhengyang frowned, his face turning grim as he said, "You’re worried that he has already succeeded?"

Chu Zhiyuan nodded, "One is that he has already succeeded, having already seized someone’s body; another is, it is not just him who wants to refine this Five Extremes Divine Needle."

Huang Zhengyang gritted his teeth and said coldly, "There are other Undying Evil Venerables who also want to refine this damned Five Extremes Divine Needle!"

Chu Zhiyuan nodded solemnly.

Huang Zhengyang’s face darkened and he gritted his teeth, "This is treating us as if we’re not human, slaughtering at will!"

Chu Zhiyuan sneered, "If they succeed, great; if not, it doesn’t matter, no loss, why not?"

"Damn it!" Huang Zhengyang was extremely resentful and aggrieved.

Chu Zhiyuan coldly said, "Our skills are inferior; how can we do anything?"

Huang Zhengyang panted heavily, his eyes like flames.

Chu Zhiyuan said, "Brother Huang, anger is useless. When soldiers come, we’ll counter them; we can only dismantle the tricks as they come."

"Fortunately, we have you, Brother Chu." Huang Zhengyang let out a long, heavy breath, suppressing the flames of anger, striving to remain clear-headed: "If it weren’t for you stepping in, he might have succeeded..., alas, if the Heavenly Sword Sect were to clash with the Court, it would be a major trouble!"

Chu Zhiyuan nodded.

That divine split’s intent was to control the Heavenly Sword Sect, conspire with the Four Great Sects, and fall out with the Court.

But if that couldn’t be achieved, then directly stirring the situation.

With Ding Chonglou being a disciple of the Heavenly Sword Sect, if he killed a few Court Evil Extermination Department experts, or Demon Hunting Bureau experts, or even a few Court officials, the Court would naturally not let him go.

What if Ding Chonglou then committed suicide?

Even if he couldn’t succeed, he could still sow discord between the Court and the Heavenly Sword Sect.

Who knows if it couldn’t stir up a greater disturbance?

Chu Zhiyuan then shook his head again: "But my clone is limited, and what I can do is also limited; with Guanghan Palace’s secret technique and my Demon Suppressing Saber, I can only cut off one wisp of the divine split, posing no threat to his true body, so they act recklessly."

"Sigh..." Huang Zhengyang sighed, "These guys are truly troublesome."

Chu Zhiyuan said, "Brother Huang, within our Court, there are indeed many court honored experts."

Huang Zhengyang nodded.

Chu Zhiyuan said, "Among these court honored experts, is there anyone capable of dealing with the Undying Evil Venerable, to harm its essence?"

Huang Zhengyang frowned in deep thought.

Chu Zhiyuan said, "The four royal family tributes, with their bloodline power, can they practice secret techniques or miracle techniques that surpass our Martial Arts Extreme Realm, so as to harm the Undying Evil Venerable at its core?"

"This..." Huang Zhengyang thought it over, shaking his head, "Brother Chu, you’ve stumped me... the tributes of the four royal bloodlines are mysterious and unfathomable, not something the Evil Extermination Department can reach!"

"Then doesn’t the Evil Extermination Department have any such top-level court honored experts?" Chu Zhiyuan asked.

Huang Zhengyang sighed and shook his head, "Our tributes are also helpless against the Undying Evil Venerable, even unable to deal with the Evil Venerable, otherwise those Evil God Statues wouldn’t have continued to exist; it depends on someone like you, Brother Chu, to destroy them."

Chu Zhiyuan frowned, "The Court’s foundation is deep, far superior to our Four Great Sects."

Huang Zhengyang nodded.

In terms of heritage and foundation, the Court is naturally more profound.

Not only does the Court have a long-standing heritage, but it’s also extensive and diverse. Who can say how many Secret Skills and secret techniques are stored in the Royal Treasure Vault?

Chu Zhiyuan said, "There might even be ancient heritages. Is there really no heritage that can restrain the Undying Evil Venerable?"

Huang Zhengyang looked thoughtful.

He pondered, "I need to consult with the Director about this...but these Miracle Techniques often cannot be cultivated; otherwise, they would have been mastered long ago."

Chu Zhiyuan sighed, "It’s always worth trying to practice... If I hadn’t cultivated Guanghan Palace’s secret technique back then, I couldn’t have resisted the Undying Evil Venerable."

Huang Zhengyang said, "I will consult with the Director. If such a secret technique truly exists, I will strive to obtain it."

Chu Zhiyuan shook his head and sighed, "I suspect it’s useless, but we have to try; otherwise, I won’t be content, and my mind won’t be at ease."

Huang Zhengyang said in a deep voice, "Brother Chu, you have done great service for the Court; gaining a secret technique shouldn’t be difficult."

Chu Zhiyuan chuckled and shook his head, "Brother Huang, stop pretending to be naïve."

Huang Zhengyang fell silent and finally shook his head, "Indeed, it’s worth trying... Not trying would indeed leave one uneasy."

Chu Zhiyuan clasped his fists, "Then it’s in your hands... To be honest, Brother Huang, I wouldn’t have spoken out this time if he hadn’t targeted our sect’s disciples."

Huang Zhengyang sighed and nodded, "I understand. After all, this isn’t Brother Chu’s responsibility. You’ve already done your utmost to resist."

Chu Zhiyuan nodded, "Brother Huang, you understand."

Huang Zhengyang looked towards the direction of the Imperial Palace, solemnly saying, "I’ll do my best to negotiate with the Director."

Chu Zhiyuan said, "No need to force it too much; if it doesn’t work, then let it be. Human power is limited; we cannot oppose the Court."

Huang Zhengyang slowly nodded.

Chu Zhiyuan changed the subject to the movements of the Evil Sect.

Huang Zhengyang smiled.

Lately, the Evil Sect has started internal killings, with Wanxiang Sect slaughtering other evil sects widely, already having massacred two sects.

Now there are no experts from the Evil Sect invading the Imperial City, and within a fifty-mile radius, there are no more evil demons.

Chu Zhiyuan smiled and congratulated.

Huang Zhengyang’s smile slowly faded, "However, there’s another problem now... Wanxiang Sect has the tendency to grow dominant alone."

Chu Zhiyuan raised an eyebrow.

Huang Zhengyang said in a deep voice, "If Wanxiang Sect becomes dominant and unites all the evil sects, it would be an unstoppable catastrophe."

Chu Zhiyuan slowly nodded.

Huang Zhengyang said, "We could suppress the Evil Sect because they were like loose sand, easily defeated one by one. If the Evil Sect unifies... it will be a terrifying existence that the Evil Extermination Department cannot suppress."

Chu Zhiyuan’s expression was serious.

Huang Zhengyang said, "Brother Chu, do you understand the importance here?"

"I’d like to hear the details."

Chu Zhiyuan understood the crux but also wanted to hear what Huang Zhengyang had to say, perhaps learning something he didn’t know.

"The power source of these evil sects is the Evil Venerable, but the Evil Venerable is not a good person. Why grant power? Actually, this isn’t his own power. He merely concentrates the disciples’ spiritual power, retaining nine parts, and granting one part back to the disciples, speeding up their cultivation."

"Yes." Chu Zhiyuan nodded.

"That spiritual power comes from the disciples’ faith power. The stronger their faith, the more spiritual power they provide, and the stronger the power granted... A dispersed Evil Sect and a dominant one can’t be compared in terms of the disciples’ level of faith."

Chu Zhiyuan sighed and nodded.

"A unified Evil Sect compared to a dispersed one will have a qualitative leap. Their disciples’ cultivation speed will far surpass current evil demons, becoming extremely terrifying... At worst, the Martial Arts world will be turbulent with rivers of blood; at most, the world will be in turmoil."

Chu Zhiyuan slowly said, "But unifying the Evil Sect isn’t easy, right? Those Evil Venerables will definitely intervene, won’t they?"

"They will definitely intervene." Huang Zhengyang nodded.

Chu Zhiyuan said, "Letting them kill each other and intervening when they both suffer - wouldn’t that be better for the Court?"

"That indeed isn’t bad." Huang Zhengyang slowly said, "But the timing is hard to grasp. If we’re too late, the consequences will be disastrous."

"So what will Brother Huang do?"

"Deal with Wanxiang Sect first, stifling its momentum!"

"Wanxiang Sect is in the limelight. It might not be easy to deal with."

Huang Zhengyang sighed, "Choosing the lesser of two evils, we can’t care about some sacrifices."

Chu Zhiyuan pondered.

Huang Zhengyang said, "Does Brother Chu have any good ideas?"

"Let us do it." Chu Zhiyuan slowly said, "Let our Four Great Sects resolve Wanxiang Sect."

Wanxiang Sect must be taken care of, cutting off Wanxiang Cliff’s reach.

Otherwise, Zhu Lingyun will have to endure Wanxiang Cliff’s revenge again and again.

Two Evil Venerables have already descended; who knows if a third or fourth Evil Venerable won’t follow?

"This..." Huang Zhengyang hesitated.

Chu Zhiyuan said, "Now that Undying Evil Venerables are appearing everywhere, we can only search widely to discover and promptly resist. I fear the Evil Extermination Department doesn’t have enough manpower?"

Huang Zhengyang smiled wryly, "Brother Chu, with you like this, I feel even more guilty and uneasy."

If all Four Great Sects could assist the Court as wholeheartedly as Chu Zhiyuan, what a great boost it would be for the Court.

For someone as sincere as Chu Zhiyuan, if the Court shows no recognition, wouldn’t it chill people’s hearts?

And if the Court rewards generously, it would set an example and create a beautiful story.

Thinking of this, he gained a bit of confidence in seeking the Director’s cooperation to obtain the secret technique.

Earlier, he didn’t have the slightest confidence.

Chu Zhiyuan smiled, "Since our experts have arrived at the Imperial City to deal a heavy blow to the evil demons, now that the Imperial City’s demon problem is settled, we should return. Dealing with Wanxiang Sect on our way back is also convenient."

"...Well then, it’s in your hands." Huang Zhengyang solemnly bowed.