The Path of the Martial Arts BOSS
Chapter 506 - 2: Lure a Thief with a Thief

Chapter 506: Chapter 2: Lure a Thief with a Thief

"Is the Heavenly Demon Palace truly the legacy of the First Generation Sky Demon?" Qing Yu pondered in wonder. "But I have crossed hands with members of the Heavenly Demon Palace, and although their moves are steeped in Demonic Qi and fraught with Evil Qi, it seems their core True Qi still draws upon the Heaven and Earth Primordial Qi."

"The true Heavenly Demon appears only once every one to two thousand years. Since the time of the First Generation Sky Demon, there have only been a total of five such Sky Demons, and among them, aside from the first, not one has come from the Heavenly Demon Palace. So, the name of the Heavenly Demon Palace is actually somewhat deceiving," murmured the Shadow King with a smile that wasn’t quite a smile.

’That’s rather tragic.’ Qing Yu expressed his condolences silently.

"Since the Sky Demon is said to absorb the Heavenly Evil Qi, then the last Earth Demon Path must involve absorbing the Earthly Evil Qi, right?" Qing Yu guessed.

"You guessed right," confirmed the Shadow King with a nod, "Compared to the Evil Sky Slaughter that appears once more than a millennium apart, this Earthly Evil Qi exists wherever danger lies. At the very least, it can be sought deep underground. Hence, the Earth Demon Path has actually developed very smoothly compared to the once-in-a-thousand-years appearance of the Sky Demon, as well as the Blood Demons who kill everywhere to practice their arts, until..."

"Until it came into conflict with the Human Emperor," interjected Qing Yu.

Undoubtedly, the Southern Border Witch Sect was the Earth Demon Path that the Shadow King referred to, and its most famous story was that of its ancestors failing in their bid for the throne against the Human Emperor, resulting in their exile to the Southern Border.

"Prince, the knowledge of the three demonic paths of Heaven, Earth, and Man you’ve shared has truly broadened Qing Yu’s horizons. But what does this have to do with the great catastrophe?" inquired Qing Yu.

"The matter dates back a thousand years ago. The Blood Demon Sect had reached its zenith, and it’s said that the Power of the Blood Demon Sect Leader was at that time considered The World’s Number One, with no further advancement possible. As such, to seek a breakthrough, the Blood Demon Sect Leader aspired to achieve the Unity of Heaven and Man, to absorb the Evil Sky Slaughter and accomplish the unprecedented feat of combining the Sky Demon with the Blood Demon.

However, the auspicious moment had not yet arrived, and the Evil Sky Slaughter remained concealed, leaving the Blood Demon Sect Leader at a loss as to how to proceed.

Under those circumstances, the Sect Leader of the Blood Demon Sect came up with a wondrous method."

"With, catastrophe, to, beckon, catastrophe," pronounced the Shadow King every word distinctly.

"With catastrophe to beckon catastrophe?" Qing Yu repeated softly.

Hearing this method, Qing Yu already had a clear idea of what followed. Don’t forget, Qing Yu himself was quite adept in the ways of the Heavenly Mechanism.

"Nowadays, it’s widely rumored that the Blood Demon Sect’s massacre of the world was to fill it with Blood Killing Qi, aiding the Sect Leader’s power to progress further. In truth, what the Sect Leader of the Blood Demon Sect intended was to create a Blood Tribulation to draw out the Evil Sky Slaughter, whose time had not yet come," the Shadow King continued.

"It seems that even the method to bring forth the grand catastrophe fifteen hundred years in advance is to use catastrophe to beckon catastrophe," uttered Qing Yu gravely.

"That’s correct," the Shadow King nodded, "A thousand years ago, the Blood Demon Sect Leader succeeded in prematurely summoning the Evil Sky Slaughter.

Had it not been for the Blood Demon Sect attracting enemies all over the world, and had not the warriors across the land joined forces to attack, the Sect Leader could have been the only person to unite the paths of the Heavenly and Earth Demons throughout history.

It’s this successful precedent that led to the decision to use catastrophe to beckon catastrophe, to prematurely summon the grand catastrophe."

"Imagine, fifteen hundred years in advance, drawing out a catastrophe that could bring about the Immortal Mechanism. The calamity required must be enormous!" Even Qing Yu, normally indifferent, couldn’t help but marvel at such a grandiose plan.

Compared to this method of using catastrophe to beckon catastrophe, his own actions in usurping Northern Zhou seemed insignificant.

"The matter of using catastrophe to beckon catastrophe had already begun to be laid out soon after the method was proposed. A number of preparations have been made. And now, the moment to trigger it is nearly upon us. When the time comes, the world will face a chaos rarely seen before, and that will be our opportunity."

"Yes, an opportunity," Qing Yu murmured softly, pondering incessantly in his heart.

’The Shadow King is probably holding back a great deal,’ Qing Yu speculated silently to himself.

The Shadow King’s intimate knowledge of the grand catastrophe and the method of using catastrophe to beckon catastrophe fifteen hundred years hence suggests he is no mere outsider to the situation.

It’s likely he is one of the orchestrators of using catastrophe to beckon catastrophe. After all, he himself has said, who in this world does not yearn for longevity?

The longer one lives, the more one cherishes longevity. Having tasted its value, who would easily give it up?

Leave aside those claims that eternal life is not a blessing but a torment.

Those people have simply attained immortality too easily, ignorant of its worth. Let them experience senility for a few years, then they would grasp the value of eternal life.

Look at figures like Xu Fu from the Fengyun World or the Great Tongue Pill from the turmoil in the five villages—both understood the preciousness of a long life. In the end, neither sought death.

Therefore, those who say immortality is a poison are either witless or simply idle with imaginations run wild.

"So, what would Prince have Qing Yu do?" asked Qing Yu.

"Has Northern Zhou now been stabilized? I recall that the current Empress Dowager and her brother, Yi Qianshan, have yet to be dealt with by you," reminded the Shadow King.

"On this matter, please rest assured, Your Highness, those two cannot turn the sky. Or rather, if they wish to rebel, I would welcome it. After all, with the Mountain River Academy as my backing, it’s difficult to make a move against these two," Qing Yu said with a smile.

"If you have taken it into account, then I need not worry further," the Shadow King nodded.

The Shadow King had a good measure of Qing Yu’s scheming. This young man, seemingly only in his twenties, was in truth a person whose years could be doubled without exaggeration.

Cunning, tactics, experience—Qing Yu hardly resembled a person in his twenties, more like a hardened coin of fifty.

If he says he longs for it, then he truly does.

"This time, I asked you to come because I want you to help me solve some troubles," said the Shadow King, "Since the founder’s generation, the Shadow Pavilion was established with the original intention of curbing the growth of worldly society forces and, if the opportunity arose, cleaning up those forces in time to prevent a repeat of the assassination that befell Great Ancestor on his descendants."

"When I took over the identity of Shadow King, it was to consolidate power and to win the trust of the surviving late Emperor, to be the vanguard against the Jianghu forces, many of whom have suffered at my hands. One of the Four Great Taoist Sects, Luo Fu Mountain, remains in decline also partly due to me.

Hence, the various Sects in society hold extreme dread towards the Shadow Pavilion. The reason you, as Xuanfa’s disciple, were implicated with the Shadow Pavilion and immediately lost the qualification to vie for Sect Leader was exactly this."

’Turns out your part played a role in my misfortune too,’ Qing Yu could not help but smile bitterly to himself.

If the reputation of Shadow Pavilion among the worldly Sects wasn’t that foul, perhaps he would now be the Sect Leader’s disciple of the Zhenwu Sect.

"After the late Emperor passed away, I’ve matured, and there’s no need to continue making enemies in worldly society. Due to various reasons, some people remain unappreciative..."